I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6214 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint commemorative coins in 
recognition of Paul Laurence Dunbar. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 25, 2018 
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 June 27, 
1872, to freed slaves Joshua and Matilda Murphy 
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 
went on to publish 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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(9) the Preparatory High School for Colored 
Youth was renamed in 1916 in honor of Paul Lau-
rence Dunbar; 
(10) the Dunbar Alumni Federation (hereafter 
in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Federation’’) was or-
ganized in 2002 to provide scholarships and other fi-
nancial support to students and graduates of Dun-
bar High School; 
(11) the Federation promotes and supports 
scholarship efforts, along with school and community 
activities; 
(12) the Federation leverages the prestige of 
Dunbar High School and its distinguished alumni to 
enhance the education of Dunbar High School stu-
dents; 
(13) the Federation promotes Dunbar High 
School alumni from more than 35 years of grad-
uating classes through their scholarship efforts, com-
munity activities, and other endeavors to support 
Dunbar High School; 
(14) the Federation helps finance such student 
development activities as the Debate Team, the 
Band, the Ski Team, the Junior Reserve Officer 
Training Corps, and athletics; 
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(15) the Federation funds faculty, staff, and 
parent appreciation and development activities; and 
(16) the Federation collects and assembles arti-
facts and memorabilia from alumni for historical 
and legacy displays to chronicle Dunbar High 
School’s rich history. 
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS. 
(a) DENOMINATIONS.—In recognition and celebration 
of Paul Laurence Dunbar, the Secretary of the Treasury 
(hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 
mint and issue the following coins: 
(1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 50,000 $5 
coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 8.359 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and 
(C) contain not less than 90 percent gold. 
(2) $1 SILVER COINS.—Not more than 400,000 
$1 coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 26.73 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and 
(C) contain not less than 90 percent silver. 
(3) HALF-DOLLAR
CLAD
COINS.—Not more 
than 750,000 half-dollar coins which shall— 
(A) weigh 11.34 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and 
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(C) be minted to the specifications for half- 
dollar coins contained in section 5112(b) of title 
31, United States Code. 
(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 numis-
matic items. 
SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The design for the coins minted 
under this Act shall be emblematic of Paul Laurence Dun-
bar. 
(b) DESIGNATIONS
AND INSCRIPTIONS.—On each 
coin minted under this Act there shall be— 
(1) a designation of the denomination of the 
coin; 
(2) an inscription of the year ‘‘2019’’; and 
(3) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, ‘‘In 
God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of America’’, and 
‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’. 
(c) SELECTION.—The design for the coins minted 
under this Act shall be— 
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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, 2019. 
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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