I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 239
To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of the Congress
to Senator John Herschel Glenn, Jr., in recognition of his outstanding
and enduring contributions toward American society for more than fifty
years.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 6, 1999
Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO´ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Banking and Financial Services
A BILL
To authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf
of the Congress to Senator John Herschel Glenn, Jr.,
in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contribu-
tions toward American society for more than fifty years.
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 ‘‘John Glenn Congres-
sional Gold Medal Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) John Herschel Glenn, Jr., was born on July
18, 1921, in Cambridge, Ohio;
(2) before he started school, John Glenn and
his family moved to nearby New Concord, Ohio;
(3) John Glenn graduated from New Concord
High School and enrolled in Muskingum College;
(4) John Glenn enlisted in the Naval Aviation
Cadet Program shortly after the attack on Pearl
Harbor and was commissioned in the United States
Marine Corps in 1943;
(5) John Glenn served in combat in the South
Pacific and also requested combat duty during the
Korean conflict;
(6) as a dedicated military officer, John Glenn
flew 149 missions during two wars;
(7) John Glenn received many honors for his
military service, including the Distinguished Flying
Cross on six occasions and the Air Medal with 18
clusters;
(8) John Glenn served several years as a test
pilot on Navy and Marine Corps jet fighters and at-
tack aircraft;
(9) as a test pilot, John Glenn set a trans-
continental speed record in 1957 by completing the
first flight to average supersonic speeds from Los
Angeles to New York;
(10) as a pioneer in the unknown realm of
space exploration, John Glenn was selected in 1959
as one of the original seven astronauts in the United
States space program;
(11) John Glenn on February 20, 1962, became
the first American to orbit the earth, completing
three orbits in a five-hour flight;
(12) John Glenn retired from the Marine Corps
in 1965 after 23 years of distinguished service to his
country;
(13) John Glenn became an outstanding busi-
ness executive in his native State of Ohio and also
took an active part in politics and in early environ-
mental protection efforts;
(14) John Glenn won his Senate seat in 1974
while carrying all 88 Ohio counties in the election;
(15) John Glenn won re-election to the Senate
in 1980 and in 1986, and in 1992 John Glenn made
history by becoming the first popularly elected Sen-
ator from Ohio to win four consecutive terms;
(16) John Glenn has set a proud example for
all Americans as a husband, father, and family man;
(17) John Glenn in 1998 returned to space
after 36 years as a member of the crew of the space
shuttle Discovery, serving as a payload specialist and
as a subject for basic research on how weightlessness
affects the body of an older person;
(18) having retired from the Senate after 24
years of distinguished service, John Glenn has given
the United States five decades of dedicated patriot-
ism, valor, and leadership; and
(19) John Glenn is a man of vision and a man
of action who has greatly inspired the people of the
United States and who will serve as a powerful role
model for the new millennium.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President is
authorized to present, on behalf of the Congress, to Sen-
ator John Herschel Glenn, Jr., a gold medal of appro-
priate design, in recognition of his significant contribu-
tions to American society for more than fifty years.
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the
presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
of the Treasury shall strike a gold medal with suitable em-
blems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the
Secretary.
(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.—Effective
February 1, 1999, there are authorized to be appropriated
$30,000 to carry out this section.
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
(a) STRIKING
AND SALE.—The Secretary of the
Treasury may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the
gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such regu-
lations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient
to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies,
use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and the cost of
the gold medal.
(b) REIMBURSEMENT OF APPROPRIATION.—The ap-
propriation used to carry out section 3 shall be reimbursed
out of the proceeds of sales under subsection (a).
SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.
The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national
medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United
States Code.
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