I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3712 
To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to the troops who defended Bataan 
during World War II. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 16, 2011 
Mr. HEINRICH (for himself, Mr. LUJA´N, and Mr. PEARCE) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, 
and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period 
to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
A BILL 
To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to the troops who 
defended Bataan during World War II. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Within hours after the attacks on Pearl 
Harbor, Hawaii, the Imperial Japanese forces 
launched an attack on the Philippines, cutting off 
vital lines of communication to United States and 
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Filipino troops assigned to the United States Army 
Forces in the Far East under the command of Gen-
eral Douglas MacArthur. 
(2) On December 8th, 1941, the 200th Coast 
Artillery Regiment, successors to the New Mexico 
National Guardsmen who made up part of the famed 
‘‘Rough Riders’’ of the Spanish-American War, were 
the ‘‘first to fire’’. 
(3) Despite being cut off from supply lines and 
reinforcements, the United States and Philippine 
Forces quickly executed a plan to delay the Japa-
nese invasion and defend the Philippines against the 
Japanese invasion. 
(4) By April 1942, troops from the United 
States and the Philippines had bravely and staunch-
ly fought off enemy attacks in Bataan for more than 
4 months, under strenuous conditions that resulted 
in widespread starvation and disease. 
(5) By maintaining their position and engaging 
the enemy for as long as they did, the troops at Ba-
taan were able to redefine the momentum of the 
war, delaying the Japanese timetable to take control 
of the southeast Pacific for needed war materials. 
Because of the heroic actions of the Bataan defend-
ers, United States and Allied forces throughout the 
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Pacific had time to regroup and prepare for the suc-
cessful liberation of the Pacific and the Philippines. 
(6) On April 9, 1942, Major General Edward 
King, his troops suffering from starvation and a lack 
of supplies, surrendered the soldiers from the United 
States and the Philippines into enemy hands. 
(7) Over the next week, troops from the United 
States and the Philippines were taken prisoner and 
forced to march 65 miles without any food, water, 
or medical care, in what came to be known as the 
‘‘Bataan Death March’’. 
(8) During this forced march, thousands of sol-
diers died, either from starvation, lack of medical 
care, sheer exhaustion, or abuse by their captors. 
(9) Conditions at the camp were appalling, 
leading to increased disease and malnutrition among 
the prisoners. 
(10) The prisoners at Camp O’Donnell would 
die at a rate of nearly four hundred per day because 
of its poor conditions. 
(11) On June 6, 1942, the prisoners from the 
United States were transferred to Camp Caba-
natuan, north of Camp O’Donnell. 
(12) Nearly 26,000 of the 50,000 Filipino pris-
oners of war died at Camp O’Donnell, and survivors 
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were gradually paroled from September through De-
cember of 1942. 
(13) Between September 1942 and December 
1944, American prisoners of war who survived the 
horrific death march were shipped north for forced 
labor aboard ‘‘hell ships’’ and succumbed in great 
numbers because of the abysmal conditions. Many of 
the ships were mistakenly targeted by allied naval 
forces because the Japanese military convoys were 
not properly labeled as carrying POW’s. The sinking 
of the Arisan Maru alone claimed nearly 1,800 
American lives. 
(14) The prisoners who remained in the camps 
suffered from continued mistreatment, malnutrition, 
lack of medical care, and horrific conditions until 
they were liberated in 1945. 
(15) The veterans of Bataan represented the 
best of America and the Philippines. They hailed 
from diverse locales across both countries and rep-
resented a true diversity of Americans. 
(16) Over the subsequent decades, these pris-
oners formed support groups, were honored in local 
and State memorials, and told their story to all peo-
ple of the United States. 
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(17) The United States Navy has continued to 
honor their history and stories by naming 2 ships 
after the battle, including 1 ship still in service, the 
USS Bataan (LHD–5), in memory of their valor 
and honorable resistance against Imperial Japanese 
forces. 
(18) Many of the survivors of Bataan have now 
passed away, and those who remain continue to tell 
their story. 
(19) The people of the United States and the 
Philippines are forever indebted to these men for— 
(A) the courage and tenacity they dem-
onstrated during the first 4 months of World 
War II, fighting against enemy soldiers; and 
(B) the perseverance that they dem-
onstrated during 3 years of capture, imprison-
ment, and atrocious conditions, while maintain-
ing dignity, honor, patriotism, and loyalty. 
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 
(a) AWARD
AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the 
House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 
of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 
award, on behalf of the Congress, of a single gold medal 
of appropriate design in honor of the troops from the 
United States and the Philippines who defended Bataan 
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and were subsequently prisoners of war, collectively, in 
recognition of their personal sacrifice and service to their 
country during World War II. 
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 
award under subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
(hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 
strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and 
inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. 
(c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 
gold medal in honor of the defenders and prisoners 
of war at Bataan under subsection (a), the gold 
medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, 
where it shall be displayed as appropriate and made 
available for research. 
(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
the Congress that the Smithsonian Institution 
should make the gold medal received under para-
graph (1) available for display at other locations, 
particularly such locations as are associated with the 
prisoners of war at Bataan. 
SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 
(a) STRIKING OF DUPLICATES.—Under such regula-
tions as the Secretary may prescribe, the Secretary may 
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strike duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck under 
section 2. 
(b) SELLING OF DUPLICATES.—The Secretary may 
sell such duplicates under subsection (a) at a price suffi-
cient to cover the costs of such duplicates, including labor, 
materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 
SEC. 4. NATIONAL MEDALS. 
Medals struck pursuant to this Act are National med-
als for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States 
Code. 
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; PROCEEDS 
OF SALE. 
(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. 
Æ 
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