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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3180 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3180

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
              of the legacy of the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 13, 2011

 Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. Holden, Ms. Schwartz, Mr. 
 Fitzpatrick, Mr. Shuster, Mr. Gerlach, Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania, 
 Mr. Altmire, Mr. Marino, Mr. Dent, Mr. Doyle, Mr. Platts, Mr. Meehan, 
  Mr. Fattah, and Mr. Critz) introduced the following bill; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
              of the legacy of the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia.

    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 ``U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia Commemorative 
Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia is the world's oldest steel 
        war ship afloat. She is the sole surviving United States naval 
        ship of the Spanish-American war and revived American Steel 
        Navy. Launched in 1892 and serving with distinction in two 
        wars, the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia is emblematic of the moment 
        the United States became a global power.
            (2) The U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia is a National Historic 
        Landmark listed on the National Register of Historic Places 
        (1964), a National Historic Engineering Landmark (1977), a 
        National Historic Maritime Landmark (1988), and was awarded 
        ``Official Project'' status of Save America's Treasures program 
        (1999).
            (3) The U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia was the flagship of the 
        Asiatic Squadron and is the only vessel from the Spanish-
        American War still in existence. Commissioned on February 5, 
        1895, she visited ports in China, Japan, Hong Kong, and the 
        Philippines.
            (4) When war was declared on April 25, 1898, between the 
        United States and Spain, Commodore George Dewey made the U.S.S. 
        Cruiser Olympia his flagship under the command of Captain 
        Gridley and entered Manila Bay on the morning of May 1, 1898, 
        to confront the Spanish ships and coastal artillery. At 
        approximately 5:40 in the morning, Commodore Dewey instructed 
        the captain, ``You may fire when ready, Gridley''. By 7:30 
        a.m., the Spanish squadron and shore batteries were destroyed 
        and Dewey accepted the surrender of the Spanish at Manila.
            (5) The U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia became famous as the first 
        victors of the War, and returned to the United States for 
        celebrations in Boston and New York. During the early twentieth 
        century, it served in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and, during 
        World War I, became the flagship of the American fleet.
            (6) In 1921, the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia was honored to 
        carry the first American unknown solider from the port of Le 
        Havre, France, to Washington, DC. On November 10, 1921, the 
        unknown soldier lay in state in the United States Capitol, and 
        then was transported by caisson to Arlington National Cemetery 
        for interment. Accompanying the casket were President Warren 
        Harding, officials of the United States government, and World 
        War I veterans.
            (7) The U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia was decommissioned in 
        Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the winter of 1922 and has 
        rested beside the city since that time. It is permanently 
        docked at Penn's Landing, Philadelphia, open for public 
        viewing, and is one of only four warships representative of the 
        Spanish-American war period that exists in the world.
            (8) The Friends of the Cruiser Olympia is a non-profit, tax 
        exempt organization dedicated to restoring and preserving the 
        national treasure of the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia and to provide 
        education for Americans and foreign visitors regarding the 
        impact it had on American and world history.
            (9) The Friends of the Cruiser Olympia is a non-
        governmental member-based organization that is entirely 
        dependant on funds from members, donations, and sponsorships 
        for its mission, which is to restore and preserve the U.S.S. 
        Cruiser Olympia.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATION.

    (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 500,000 $1 coins in commemoration of the legacy of the U.S.S. 
Cruiser Olympia, each of which shall--
            (1) weigh 26.73 grams;
            (2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
            (3) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper.
    (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 COINS.

    (a) Design Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this 
        Act shall be emblematic of the courage, pride, sacrifice, sense 
        of duty, and history of the U.S.S. Cruiser Olympia.
            (2) Designation 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 ``2016''; 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 be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary, after consultation with the 
        Friends of the Cruiser Olympia and the Commission of Fine Arts; 
        and
            (2) 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) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins under this 
Act only during the calendar year beginning on January 1, 2016.

SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.

    (a) Sale Price.--The coins 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) 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.
    (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United 
States Code, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of 
coins issued under this Act shall be paid to the Friends of the Cruiser 
Olympia for the purpose of restoring and preserving the U.S.S. Cruiser 
Olympia.
    (c) Audits.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
have the rights to examine such books, records, documents, and other 
data of the Friends of the Cruiser Olympia as may be related to the 
expenditures of amounts paid under subsection (b).
    (d) Limitation.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), no surcharge may 
be included with respect to the issuance under this Act of any coin 
during a calendar year if, as of the time of such issuance, the 
issuance of such coin would result in the number of commemorative coin 
program issuance limitation under section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, 
United States Code. The Secretary of the Treasury may issue guidance to 
carry out this subsection.
                                 <all>
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