I
104TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2627
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration
of the sesquicentennial of the founding of the Smithsonian Institution.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 14, 1995
Mr. LIVINGSTON (for himself and Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Banking and Fi-
nancial Services
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins
in commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the found-
ing of the Smithsonian Institution.
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 ‘‘Smithsonian Institu-
tion Sesquicentennial Commemorative Coin Act of 1995’’.
SEC. 2. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.
(a) DENOMINATIONS.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’)
shall mint and issue the following coins in commemoration
of the sesquicentennial of the founding of the Smithsonian
Institution:
(1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 100,000 5
dollar coins, which shall—
(A) weigh 8.359 grams;
(B) have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
(C) contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent
alloy.
(2) $1 SILVER COINS.—Not more than 800,000
1 dollar coins, which shall—
(A) weigh 26.73 grams;
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(C) contain 90 percent silver and 10 per-
cent copper.
(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 section
5134 of title 31, United States Code, all coins minted
under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.
SEC. 3. SOURCES OF BULLION.
(a) GOLD.—The Secretary shall obtain gold for mint-
ing coins under this Act pursuant to the authority of the
Secretary under other provisions of law.
(b) SILVER.—The Secretary shall obtain silver for
minting coins under this Act only from stockpiles estab-
lished under the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock
Piling Act.
SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS.
(a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The design of the coins
minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the sci-
entific, educational, and cultural significance and
importance of the Smithsonian Institution.
(2) DESIGNATION
AND
INSCRIPTIONS.—On
each coin minted under this Act there shall be—
(A) a designation of the value of the coin;
(B) an inscription of the year ‘‘1996’’;
(C) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’,
‘‘In God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of Amer-
ica’’, and ‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’; and
(D) an inscription of the following phrase
from the original bequest of James Smithson:
‘‘for the increase and diffusion of knowledge’’.
(b) SELECTION.—The design for the coins minted
under this Act shall be—
(1) selected by the Secretary after consultation
with the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution and the Commission of Fine Arts; 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) MINT FACILITY.—Only 1 facility of the United
States Mint may be used to strike any particular combina-
tion of denomination and quality of the coins minted under
this Act.
(c) PERIOD
FOR ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may
issue coins minted under this Act only during the 1-year
period beginning on August 1, 1996.
SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.
(a) SALE PRICE.—The coins issued under this Act
shall be sold by the Secretary at a price equal to the sum
of—
(1) the face value of the coins;
(2) the surcharge provided in subsection (d)
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.
(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.
(d) SURCHARGES.—All sales shall include a sur-
charge of—
(1) $35 per coin for the $5 coin; and
(2) $10 per coin for the $1 coin.
SEC. 7. GENERAL WAIVER OF PROCUREMENT REGULA-
TIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection
(b), no provision of law governing procurement or public
contracts shall be applicable to the procurement of goods
and services necessary for carrying out the provisions of
this Act.
(b) EQUAL
EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY.—Sub-
section (a) shall not relieve any person entering into a con-
tract under the authority of this Act from complying with
any law relating to equal employment opportunity.
SEC. 8. DISTRIBUTION OF SURCHARGES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—All surcharges received by the
Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act shall
be promptly paid by the Secretary to the Smithsonian In-
stitution for the following purposes:
(1) 85 percent of the amount transferred shall
be available for such purposes as the Board of Re-
gents of the Smithsonian Institution determines to
be appropriate.
(2) 15 percent of the amount transferred shall
be dedicated to the support of the operation and ac-
tivities of the National Numismatic Collection at the
National Museum of American History.
(b) AUDITS.—The Comptroller General of the United
States shall have the right to examine such books, records,
documents, and other data of the Smithsonian Institution
as may be related to the expenditures of amounts paid
under subsection (a).
SEC. 9. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES.
(a) NO NET COST TO THE GOVERNMENT.—The Sec-
retary shall take such actions as may be necessary to en-
sure that minting and issuing coins under this Act will
not result in any net cost to the United States Govern-
ment.
(b) PAYMENT FOR COINS.—A coin shall not be issued
under this Act unless the Secretary has received—
(1) full payment for the coin;