H. R. 2423 

One Hundred Sixteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE FIRST SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and nineteen 

An Act 

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, giving 

women in the United States the right to vote. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Women’s Suffrage Centennial 

Commemorative Coin Act’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

(1) Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organized 

the first Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New 

York. 68 women and 32 men signed the Declaration of Sentiments at the Convention in July 1848. 

(2) The Declaration of Sentiments was modeled after the 

Declaration of Independence and declared that ‘‘all men and 

women are created equal’’, linking women’s rights directly to 

the founding ideals of the United States. 

(3) Suffrage activists, including Elizabeth Cady Stanton, 

Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. 

Wells, Jovita Idar, Inez Millholland, Mary Church Terrell, Anne 

Dallas Dudley, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, Lucy Burns, 

Esther Hobart Morris, and many others, conducted over 900 

local, State, and Federal campaigns over a 72-year time span 

to win women the right to vote. 

(4) On November 6, 1917, New York granted women the 

right to vote, which was an act that created momentum for 

the national movement that culminated in the ratification of 

the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States 

3 years later. 

(5) The 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United 

States (‘‘The Susan B. Anthony Amendment’’) guarantees all 

United States women the right to vote and was passed by 

the 66th Congress of the United States on June 4, 1919. 

(6) On August 9, 1920, right before the ratification period 

was set to expire, Governor Albert H. Roberts called a special 

session of the Tennessee General Assembly to consider the 

amendment. Pro-suffrage and anti-suffrage activists from 

around the country descended on Nashville, Tennessee, intent 

on influencing the legislature. 

(7) After the amendment was defeated in a 48–48 tie vote, 

Tennessee State Representative Harry T. Burn from McMinn 
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County cast the deciding favorable vote after receiving a note 

from his mother, Phoebe Ensminger Burn, imploring him to 

vote yes for ratification. 

(8) On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th and 

final State needed to pass the 19th Amendment, ensuring its 

ratification pursuant to Article V of the Constitution of the 

United States. 

(9) The 19th Amendment was ratified on August 26, 1920, 

when Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby issued a proclamation 

announcing it has become part of the Constitution of the United 

States. 

(10) The ratification of the 19th Amendment marked the 

single largest extension of voting rights in United States history, enfranchising 27,000,000 American women in the United 

States. 

(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is— 

(1) to honor and commemorate the work of women suffrage 

activists in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; 

(2) to increase public awareness and appreciation for the 

history of the women’s suffrage movement; and 

(3) to encourage all women in the United States to exercise 

their hard-won franchise and to become involved in civic life 

if they so choose. 

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS. 

(a) $1 SILVER COINS.—The Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter 

in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall mint and issue 

not more than 400,000 $1 coins, which shall— 

(1) weigh 26.73 grams; 

(2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and 

(3) contain at least 90 percent silver. 

(b) LEGAL TENDER.—The coins minted under this Act shall 

be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United 

States Code. 

(c) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of sections 5134 and 

5136 of title 31, United States Code, all coins minted under this 

Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COIN. 

(a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— (1) IN GENERAL.—The design of the coins minted under 

this Act shall be emblematic of the women who played a vital 

role in rallying support for the 19th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. 

(2) DESIGNATIONS AND INSCRIPTIONS.—On each coin minted 

under this Act, there shall be— 

(A) a designation of the value of the coin; 

(B) an inscription of the year ‘‘2020’’; and 

(C) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, ‘‘In God We 

Trust’’, ‘‘United States of America’’, and ‘‘E Pluribus 

Unum’’. 

(b) SELECTION.—The design for the coins minted under this 

Act shall— 

(1) contain motifs that honor Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth 

Cady Stanton, Carrie Chapman Catt, Harriet Tubman, Mary 

Church Terrell, Alice Paul, Lide Meriwether, Ida B. Wells, 

and other suffrage activists of the late 19th century and early 

20th centuries; 
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(2) be selected by the Secretary, after consultation with 

the Smithsonian Institution’s American Women’s History Initiative, and the Commission of Fine Arts; and 

(3) be reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee. 

SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS. 

(a) QUALITY OF COINS.—Coins minted under this Act shall 

be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities. 

(b) MINT FACILITIES.—Only one facility of the United States 

Mint may be used to strike any particular quality of the coins 

minted under this Act. 

(c) PERIOD FOR ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may issue coins under 

this Act only during the period beginning on January 1, 2020, 

and ending on December 31, 2020. 

SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS. 

(a) SALE PRICE.—The coins issued under this Act shall be 

sold by the Secretary at a price equal to the sum of— 

(1) the face value of the coins; 

(2) the surcharge provided in section 7(a) with respect 

to such coins; and 

(3) the cost of designing and issuing the coins (including 

labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses, 

marketing, and shipping). 

(b) BULK SALES.—The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the 

coins issued under this Act at a reasonable discount. 

(c) PREPAID ORDERS.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders 

for the coins minted under this Act before the issuance of 

such coins. 

(2) DISCOUNT.—Sale prices with respect to prepaid orders 

under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount. 

SEC. 7. SURCHARGES. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—All sales of coins issued under this Act shall 

include a surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin described 

under section 3(a). 

(b) DISTRIBUTION.—Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United 

States Code, and section 8(2), all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act shall be promptly 

paid by the Secretary to the Smithsonian Institution’s American 

Women’s History Initiative for the purpose of— 

(1) collecting, studying, and establishing programs relating 

to women’s contributions to various fields and throughout different periods of history that have influenced the direction 

of the United States; and 

(2) creating exhibitions and programs that recognize 

diverse perspectives on women’s history and contributions. 

(c) AUDITS.—The Smithsonian Institution’s American Women’s 

History Initiative shall be subject to the audit requirements of 

section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with regard to 

the amounts received under subsection (b). 

SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES. 

The Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary 

to ensure that— 
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(1) minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result 

in any net cost to the United States Government; and 

(2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, shall be disbursed to any recipient designated in section 7(b) until the 

total cost of designing and issuing all of the coins authorized 

by this Act (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, 

overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping) is recovered by 

the United States Treasury, consistent with sections 5112(m) 

and 5134(f) of title 31, United States Code. 

SEC. 9. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying 

with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined 

by reference to the latest statement titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of 

PAYGO Legislation’’ for this Act, submitted for printing in the 

Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior 

to the vote on passage. 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.