I 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5315 

To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to a group of soldiers from World 

War II. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2008 

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee 

on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to a group of soldiers 

from World War II. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress makes the following findings: 

5 (1) In April 1942, nearly 12,000 American sol6 diers and 67,000 Filipino soldiers based at Bataan, 

7 Philippines, bravely and staunchly fought off enemy 

8 attacks for more than 4 months while under strenVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:35 Feb 12, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5315.IH H5315

wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
2 

•HR 5315 IH

1 uous conditions that resulted in starvation and dis2 ease. 

3 (2) By maintaining their position and engaging 

4 the enemy for as long as they did, the soldiers at 

5 Bataan were able to redefine the momentum of the 

6 war and provide other United States and Allied 

7 forces throughout the Pacific with time to plan and 

8 prepare for subsequent, crucial battles. 

9 (3) On April 9, 1942, Maj. General Edward 

10 King surrendered these troops into enemy hands. 

11 (4) Over the next week, these prisoners were 

12 forced to march 65 miles without any food, water or 

13 medical care in what came to be know as the Bataan 

14 Death March. 

15 (5) During this forced march, thousands of sol16 diers died, either from starvation, lack of medical 

17 care, sheer exhaustion, or from abuse by their cap18 tors. 

19 (6) Within the first 40 days at Camp 

20 O’Donnell, 1,600 more American prisoners died. 

21 (7) The conditions at the camp were sub22 standard, leading to increased disease and malnutri23 tion among the prisoners. 

24 (8) On June 6, 1942, the American prisoners 

25 were transferred to Cabanatuan, north of Camp 


wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
3 

•HR 5315 IH

1 O’Donnell. In July, all Filipino prisoners were pa2 roled. 

3 (9) These prisoners suffered from continued 

4 mistreatment, malnutrition, lack of medical care, 

5 and horrific conditions. 

6 (10) The prisoners who remained in these 

7 camps were liberated in 1945 and returned home. 

8 (11) Over the subsequent decades, these pris9 oners formed support groups, were honored in local 

10 and State memorials, and told their story to all 

11 Americans. 

12 (12) Many of these soldiers have now passed 

13 away, and those who remain continue to tell their 

14 story. 

15 (13) The United States is forever indebted to 

16 these men for the courage they demonstrated during 

17 the first 4 months of World War II in fighting 

18 against enemy soldiers, and for the perseverance 

19 they sustained during 3 years of capture, imprison20 ment, and atrocious conditions while maintaining 

21 dignity, honor, patriotism, and loyalty. 

22 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

23 (a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the 

24 House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 

25 of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 


wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
4 

•HR 5315 IH

1 award, on behalf of the Congress, of a single gold medal 

2 of appropriate design in honor of American soldiers who 

3 were prisoners of war at Bataan, collectively, in recogni4 tion of their personal sacrifice and service to their country. 

5 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the 

6 award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

7 Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec8 retary’’) shall strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, 

9 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec10 retary. 

11 (c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

13 gold medal in honor of the prisoners of war at Ba14 taan under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be 

15 given to the Smithsonian Institution, where it will be 

16 displayed as appropriate and made available for re17 search. 

18 (2) SENSE.—It is the sense of the Congress 

19 that the Smithsonian Institution should make the 

20 gold medal received under paragraph (1) available 

21 for display elsewhere, particularly at other appro22 priate locations associated with the prisoners of war 

23 at Bataan. 


wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS
5 

•HR 5315 IH

1 SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

2 Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre3 scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

4 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 2, at a price 

5 sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor, 

6 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

7 SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS. 

8 Medals struck pursuant to this Act are National med9 als for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States 

10 Code. 

11 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEEDS 

12 OF SALE. 

13 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

14 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

15 Public Enterprise Fund, an amount not to exceed $30,000 

16 to pay for the cost of the medals authorized under section 

17 2. 

18 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 

19 sale of duplicate bronze medals under section 3 shall be 

20 deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise 

21 Fund. 

Æ 


wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with BILLS