II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2321 

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a coin in commemoration 

of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Negro Leagues baseball. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 30, 2019 

Mr. BLUNT (for himself and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a coin 

in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Negro Leagues baseball. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Negro Leagues Base5 ball Centennial Commemorative Coin Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary 

9 of the establishment of the Negro National League, 


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1 a professional baseball league formed in response to 

2 African-American players being banned from the 

3 major leagues. 

4 (2) On February 13, 1920, Andrew ‘‘Rube’’ 

5 Foster convened a meeting of 8 independent Afri6 can-American baseball team owners at the Paseo 

7 YMCA in Kansas City, Missouri, to form a ‘‘league 

8 of their own,’’ establishing the Negro National 

9 League, the first successful, organized professional 

10 African-American baseball league in the United 

11 States. 

12 (3) Soon, additional leagues formed in eastern 

13 and southern States. 

14 (4) The Negro Leagues would operate for 40 

15 years until 1960. 

16 (5) The story of the Negro Leagues is a story 

17 of strong-willed athletes who forged a glorious his18 tory in the midst of an inglorious era of segregation 

19 in the United States. 

20 (6) The passion of the Negro Leagues players 

21 for the ‘‘National Pastime’’ would not only change 

22 the game, but also the United States. 

23 (7) The creation of the Negro Leagues provided 

24 a playing field for more than 2,600 African-AmerVerDate Sep 11 2014 17:52 Aug 03, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2321.IS S2321

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1 ican and Hispanic baseball players to showcase their 

2 world-class baseball abilities. 

3 (8) The Negro Leagues introduced an exciting 

4 brand of baseball that was in stark contrast to 

5 Major League Baseball. 

6 (9) A fast, aggressive style of play attracted 

7 black and white fans who sat together to watch 

8 those games at a time when it was virtually unheard 

9 of to interact socially in such a way. 

10 (10) Negro Leagues baseball would become a 

11 catalyst for economic development across the United 

12 States in major urban centers such as Kansas City, 

13 St. Louis, New York, Memphis, Baltimore, Wash14 ington, DC, Chicago, and Atlanta. 

15 (11) The Negro Leagues pioneered ‘‘Night 

16 Baseball’’ in 1930, 5 years before Major League 

17 Baseball, and would introduce game-changing inno18 vations such as shin guards and the batting helmet. 

19 (12) The Negro Leagues helped make the Na20 tional Pastime a global game as players from the 

21 Negro Leagues— 

22 (A) were the first people from the United 

23 States to play in many Spanish-speaking coun24 tries; and 


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1 (B) introduced professional baseball to the 

2 Japanese in 1927. 

3 (13) Jackie Robinson, a military veteran and 

4 former member of the Negro Leagues’ Kansas City 

5 Monarchs, would break Major League Baseball’s 

6 color barrier on April 15, 1947, with the Brooklyn 

7 Dodgers, paving the way for other African-American 

8 and Hispanic baseball players. 

9 (14) The Negro Leagues were born out of seg10 regation yet would become a driving force for social 

11 change in the United States. 

12 (15) The Negro Leagues produced future Major 

13 League Baseball stars, including Leroy ‘‘Satchel’’ 

14 Paige, Larry Doby, Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, 

15 Ernie Banks, and Roy Campanella. 

16 (16) The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum was 

17 established in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1990— 

18 (A) to save from extinction a precious 

19 piece of Americana and baseball history; and 

20 (B) to use the many life lessons of the 

21 powerful story of triumph over adversity of 

22 Negro Leagues players to promote tolerance, di23 versity, and inclusion. 

24 (17) In 2006, Congress granted National Des25 ignation to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, 


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1 recognizing it as ‘‘America’s Home’’ for Negro 

2 Leagues baseball history. 

3 SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS. 

4 (a) DENOMINATIONS.—The Secretary of the Treas5 ury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) 

6 shall mint and issue the following coins: 

7 (1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 50,000 $5 

8 coins, which shall— 

9 (A) weigh 8.359 grams; 

10 (B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and 

11 (C) contain not less than 90 percent gold. 

12 (2) $1 SILVER COINS.—Not more than 400,000 

13 $1 coins, which shall— 

14 (A) weigh 26.73 grams; 

15 (B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and 

16 (C) contain not less than 90 percent silver. 

17 (3) HALF-DOLLAR CLAD COINS.—Not more 

18 than 750,000 half-dollar coins which shall— 

19 (A) weigh 11.34 grams; 

20 (B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and 

21 (C) be minted to the specifications for half22 dollar coins contained in section 5112(b) of title 

23 31, United States Code. 


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

2 Act shall be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of 

3 title 31, United States Code. 

4 (c) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

5 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all coins minted 

6 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

7 SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS. 

8 (a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The design of the coins 

10 minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the 

11 Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and its mission to 

12 promote tolerance, diversity, and inclusion. 

13 (2) DESIGNATION AND INSCRIPTIONS.—On 

14 each coin minted under this Act there shall be— 

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

16 (B) an inscription of the year ‘‘2021’’; and 

17 (C) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, 

18 ‘‘In God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of Amer19 ica’’, and ‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’. 

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

21 under this Act shall be— 

22 (1) selected by the Secretary after consultation 

23 with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the 

24 Commission of Fine Arts; and 


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1 (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory 

2 Committee. 

3 SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS. 

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

5 Act shall be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities. 

6 (b) MINT FACILITIES.—Only 1 facility of the United 

7 States Mint may be used to strike any particular quality 

8 of the coins minted under this Act. 

9 (c) PERIOD FOR ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may 

10 issue coins minted under this Act only during the 1-year 

11 period beginning on January 1, 2021. 

12 SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS. 

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

14 shall be sold by the Secretary at a price equal to the sum 

15 of— 

16 (1) the face value of the coins; 

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

18 respect to such coins; and 

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

20 (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, 

21 overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping). 

22 (b) BULK SALES.—The Secretary shall make bulk 

23 sales of the coins issued under this Act at a reasonable 

24 discount. 

25 (c) PREPAID ORDERS.— 


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

2 prepaid orders for the coins minted under this Act 

3 before the issuance of such coins. 

4 (2) DISCOUNT.—Sale prices with respect to pre5 paid orders under paragraph (1) shall be at a rea6 sonable discount. 

7 SEC. 7. SURCHARGES. 

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

9 Act shall include a surcharge of— 

10 (1) $35 per coin for the $5 coin; 

11 (2) $10 per coin for the $1 coin; and 

12 (3) $5 per coin for the half-dollar coin. 

13 (b) DISTRIBUTION.—Subject to section 5134(f)(1) of 

14 title 31, United States Code, all surcharges received by 

15 the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act 

16 shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the Negro 

17 Leagues Baseball Museum for educational and outreach 

18 programs and exhibits. 

19 (c) AUDITS.—The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum 

20 shall be subject to the audit requirements of section 

21 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with regard 

22 to the amounts received under subsection (b). 

23 (d) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

24 no surcharge may be included with respect to the issuance 

25 under this Act of any coin during a calendar year if, as 


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1 of the time of such issuance, the issuance of such coin 

2 would result in the number of commemorative coin pro3 grams issued during such year to exceed the annual 2 

4 commemorative coin program issuance limitation under 

5 section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, United States Code (as in 

6 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act). The Sec7 retary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out 

8 this subsection. 

9 SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES. 

10 The Secretary shall take such actions as may be nec11 essary to ensure that— 

12 (1) minting and issuing coins under this Act 

13 will not result in any net cost to the United States 

14 Government; and 

15 (2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, 

16 are disbursed to any recipient designated in section 

17 7 until the total cost of designing and issuing all of 

18 the coins authorized by this Act (including labor, 

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

20 marketing, and shipping) is recovered by the United 

21 States Treasury, consistent with sections 5112(m) 

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

Æ 


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