Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Jackie Roosevelt Robinson was born on
January 31, 1919, in Cairo, Georgia, and was the
youngest of 5 children.
(2) Jackie Robinson attended the University of
California Los Angeles where he starred in football,
basketball, baseball, and track. His remarkable skills
earned him a reputation as the best athlete in Amer-
ica.
(3) In 1947, Jackie Robinson was signed by the
Brooklyn Dodgers and became the first black player
to play in Major League Baseball. His signing is
considered one of the most significant moments in
the history of professional sports in America. For
his remarkable performance on the field in his first
season, he won the National League’s Rookie of the
Year Award.
(4) In 1949, Jackie Robinson was voted the
National League’s Most Valuable Player by the
Baseball Writers Association of America.
(5) In 1962, Jackie Robinson was elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame.
(6) Although the achievements of Jackie Robin-
son began with athletics, they widened to have a
profound influence on civil and human rights in
America.
(7) The signing of Jackie Robinson as the first
black player in Major League Baseball occurred be-
fore the United States military was desegregated by
President Harry Truman, before the civil rights
marches took place in the South, and before the Su-
preme Court issued its historic ruling in Brown v.
Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).
(8) The American public came to regard Jackie
Robinson as a person of exceptional fortitude, integ-
rity, and athletic ability so rapidly that, by the end
of 1947, he finished ahead of President Harry Tru-
man, General Dwight Eisenhower, General Douglas
MacArthur, and Bob Hope in a national poll for the
most popular person in America, finishing only be-
hind Bing Crosby.
(9) Jackie Robinson was named vice president
of Chock Full O’ Nuts in 1957 and later co-founded
the Freedom National Bank of Harlem.
(10) Leading by example, Jackie Robinson in-
fluenced many of the greatest political leaders in
America.
(11) Jackie Robinson worked tirelessly with a
number of religious and civic organizations to better
the lives of all Americans.
(12) The life and principles of Jackie Robinson
are the basis of the Jackie Robinson Foundation,
which keeps his memory alive by providing children
of low-income families with leadership and edu-
cational opportunities.
(13) The legacy and personal achievements of
Jackie Robinson, as an athlete, a business leader,
and a citizen, have had a lasting and positive influ-
ence on the advancement of civil rights in the United
States.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President is
authorized to present, on behalf of the Congress, to the
family of Jackie Robinson, a gold medal of appropriate
design in recognition of the many contributions of Jackie
Robinson to the Nation.
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the
presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
of the Treasury (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec-
retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems,
devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec-
retary.
SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre-
scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in
bronze of the gold medal struck under section 2 at a price
sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor,
materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.
SEC. 4. STATUS AS NATIONAL MEDALS.
The medals struck under this Act are national medals
for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
authorized to be charged against the United States Mint
Public Enterprise Fund an amount not to exceed $30,000
to pay for the cost of the medal authorized under section
2.
(b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the
sale of duplicate bronze medals under section 3 shall be
deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise
Fund.
SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) there should be designated a national day
for the purpose of recognizing the accomplishments
of Jackie Robinson; and
(2) the President should issue a proclamation
calling on the people of the United States to observe
the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
Passed the House of Representatives October 7,
2003.
Attest:
Clerk.