I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5940 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in 
recognition of Paul Laurence Dunbar. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 
Ms. NORTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemo-
rative coins in recognition of Paul Laurence Dunbar. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Paul Laurence Dunbar 
Commemorative Coin Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that— 
(1) Paul Laurence Dunbar was one of the first 
influential African-American poets in American lit-
erature, writing such classics as ‘‘Majors and Mi-
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nors’’ and ‘‘Lyrics of Lowly Life’’, and composing 
the lyrics to ‘‘In Dahomey’’, the first all-African- 
American musical produced on Broadway; 
(2) Paul Laurence Dunbar was born on June 
27, 1872, to freed slaves Joshua and Matilda Mur-
phy Dunbar; 
(3) Paul Laurence Dunbar first published a se-
ries of poems at age 14 in the Dayton Herald; 
(4) in 1893, Paul Laurence Dunbar published 
a series of poems in a work entitled ‘‘Oak and Ivy’’; 
(5) by the late 1890s, Paul Laurence Dunbar 
had become a prominent author, having had his 
poems published in such major national newspapers 
and magazines as The New York Times; 
(6) over his career, Paul Laurence Dunbar pub-
lished more collections of poems, short stories, and 
novels; 
(7) Paul Laurence Dunbar died on February 9, 
1906, at 33 years of age; 
(8) Paul Laurence Dunbar Senior High School 
(hereafter referred to as Dunbar High School) was 
established in the District of Columbia in 1870 as 
the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, and 
was the first public high school for African-American 
students in the country; 
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(1) selected by the Secretary after consultation 
with— 
(A) the Commission of Fine Arts; and 
(B) the Federation; and 
(2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative 
Coin 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 minted under this Act only during the 1-year 
period beginning on January 1, 2023. 
SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS. 
(a) SALE PRICE.—The coins issued under this Act 
shall be sold by the Secretary at a price based upon 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. 
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(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 pre-
paid orders under paragraph (1) shall be at a rea-
sonable discount. 
SEC. 7. SURCHARGES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—All sales of coins minted under 
this Act shall include a surcharge as follows: 
(1) A surcharge of $35 per coin for the $5 coin. 
(2) A surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin. 
(3) A surcharge of $5 per coin for the half-dol-
lar 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 promptly paid by the Secretary to the Federation. 
(c) EXEMPTION
TO COMMEMORATIVE COIN PRO-
GRAM LIMITATIONS.—This Act shall— 
(1) not be subject to section 5112(m)(1) of title 
31, United States Code; and 
(2) not be a ‘‘commemorative coin program’’ for 
purposes of such section. 
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(d) AUDIT.—The recipient described under sub-
section (b) 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 nec-
essary to ensure that— 
(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, 
are disbursed to the recipient designated in section 
7 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. 
Æ 
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