I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3439
To authorize the President to present a gold medal on behalf of the Congress
to the Choctaw Code Talkers in recognition of their contributions to
the Nation, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DECEMBER 6, 2001
Mr. WATKINS of Oklahoma introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Financial Services
A BILL
To authorize the President to present a gold medal on behalf
of the Congress to the Choctaw Code Talkers in recogni-
tion of their contributions to the Nation, and for other
purposes.
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 ‘‘Choctaw Code Talkers
Recognition Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) On April 6, 1917, the United States, after
extraordinary provocations, declared war on Ger-
many, thus the United States entered World War I,
the War to End All Wars.
(2) At the time of this declaration of war, In-
dian people in the United States, including members
of the Choctaw Nation, were not accorded the status
of citizens of the United States.
(3) Without regard to this lack of citizenship,
many members of the Choctaw Nation joined many
members of other Indian tribes and nations in enlist-
ing in the Armed Forces to fight on behalf of their
native land.
(4) Members of the Choctaw Nation were en-
listed in the force known as the American Expedi-
tionary Force, which began hostile actions in France
in the fall of 1917, and specifically, members of the
Choctaw Nation were incorporated in a company of
Indian enlistees serving in the 142d Infantry Com-
pany of the 36th Division.
(5) A major impediment to Allied operations in
general, and American operations in particular, was
the fact that the German forces had deciphered all
codes used for transmitting information between Al-
lied commands, leading to substantial loss of men
and materiel during the first year of American ac-
tion.
(6) Because of the proximity and static nature
of the battle lines, a method to communicate without
the knowledge of the enemy was needed.
(7) An American commander realized the fact
that he had under his command a number of men
who spoke a native language. While the use of such
native languages was discouraged by the American
Government, the commander sought out and re-
cruited 18 Choctaw Indians to use for transmission
of field telephone communications during an upcom-
ing campaign.
(8) Because the language used by the Choctaw
soldiers in the transmission of information was not
based on a European language or on a mathematical
progression, the Germans were unable to understand
any of the transmissions.
(9) The Choctaw soldiers were placed in dif-
ferent command positions, to achieve the widest pos-
sible area for communications.
(10) The use of the Choctaw Code Talkers was
particularly important in the movement of American
soldiers in October of 1918 (including securing for-
ward and exposed positions), in the protection of
supplies during American action (including pro-
tecting gun emplacements from enemy shelling), and
in the preparation for the assault on German posi-
tions in the final stages of combat operations in the
fall of 1918.
(11) In the opinion of the officers involved, the
use of Choctaw Indians to transmit information in
their native language saved men and munitions, and
was highly successful. Based on this successful expe-
rience, Choctaw Indians were being withdrawn from
frontline units for training in transmission of codes
so as to be more widely used when the war came to
a halt.
(12) The Germans never succeeded in breaking
the Choctaw code.
(13) This was the first time in modern warfare
that such transmission of messages in a native
American language was used for the purpose of con-
fusing the enemy.
(14) This action by members of the Choctaw
Nation is another example of the commitment of
American Indians to the defense of our great Nation
and adds to the proud legacy of such service.
(15) The Choctaw Nation has honored the ac-
tions of these 18 Choctaw Code Talkers through a
memorial bearing their names located at the en-
trance of the tribal complex in Durant, Oklahoma.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—To express rec-
ognition by the United States of America and its citizens
in honoring the Choctaw Code Talkers who distinguished
themselves in performing a unique, highly successful com-
munications operation that greatly assisted in saving
countless lives and in hastening the end of World War I,
the President is authorized to present to each Choctaw
Code Talker, or a surviving family member of that Code
Talker, on behalf of the Congress, a gold medal of appro-
priate design honoring the Choctaw Code Talkers.
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the
presentations referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the
‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike gold medals with suitable em-
blems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the
Secretary.
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in
bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3
under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe,
and at a price sufficient to cover the costs thereof, includ-
ing labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead
expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.
SEC. 5. STATUS AS NATIONAL MEDALS.
The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national
medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United
States Code.
SEC. 6. FUNDING.
(a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—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 costs of the medals authorized by this Act.
(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