I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1257 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration 
of the United States Coast Guard. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2019 
Mr. COURTNEY (for himself, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Miss GONZA´LEZ- 
COLO´N of Puerto Rico, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. KILMER, 
Mr. COOPER, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. LIPINSKI, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SUOZZI, 
Mr. NORCROSS, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. 
KUSTER of New Hampshire, Mr. SIRES, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. COHEN, Mr. 
GOLDEN, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
PERLMUTTER, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, 
Mr. COLE, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. HIMES, and Mrs. HAYES) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins 
in commemoration of the United States Coast Guard. 
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 ‘‘United States Coast 
Guard Commemorative Coin Act of 2019’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
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(1) The United States Coast Guard was found-
ed on August 4, 1790, as the Revenue Cutter Serv-
ice under the United States Department of the 
Treasury. 
(2) Congress created the Coast Guard on Janu-
ary 28, 1915, by merging the Revenue Cutter Serv-
ice and the United States Lifesaving Service, was 
moved to the Department of Transportation in 
1967, and on February 25, 2003, became part of 
the Department of Homeland Security. 
(3) Although the smallest of the uniformed 
services, today the United States Coast Guard con-
ducts a wide variety of missions to protect the pub-
lic, the environment, and the United States economic 
and security interests in any maritime region, in-
cluding international waters and America’s coasts, 
ports, and inland waterways. 
(4) Every day, the United States Coast Guard 
plays a broad and important role in homeland secu-
rity, law enforcement, search and rescue, marine en-
vironmental pollution response, and the maintenance 
of river, intra-coastal and offshore aids to navigation 
(ATON). 
(5) The United States Coast Guard is our Na-
tion’s oldest seagoing military service, staying true 
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to their motto, Semper Paratus or ‘‘Always Ready’’, 
for 227 years. 
(6) The United States Coast Guard is sup-
ported by over 55,000 Active Duty, Reserve, and Ci-
vilian personnel, who in 2016 responded to 16,304 
search and rescue cases saving 5,221 lives, con-
ducted 47,418 waterborne patrols of critical mari-
time infrastructure, escorted over 2,671 high-capac-
ity passenger vessels, conducted 7,022 security 
boardings in and around United States ports, re-
moved $5.7 billion worth of illegal drugs, interdicted 
6,346 undocumented migrants attempting to illegally 
enter the United States, and maintained 45,114 
navigation aids that support $3.2 trillion in eco-
nomic activity on our Nation’s waterways. 
(7) Section 213 of Public Law 108–293 states 
that ‘‘The Commandant may establish a National 
Coast Guard Museum, on lands which will be feder-
ally owned and administered by the Coast Guard, 
and are located in New London, Connecticut, at, or 
in close proximity to, the Coast Guard Academy’’. 
(8) The National Coast Guard Museum Asso-
ciation, a nonprofit association dedicated to improve 
public understanding of the history, service, and 
missions of the Coast Guard, is working with the 
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United States Coast Guard, the City of New Lon-
don, the State of Connecticut, and a range of local, 
regional, and national stakeholders to develop, plan, 
and raise capital for the National Coast Guard Mu-
seum, to be located in New London, Connecticut. 
(9) The United States Coast Guard is the only 
military service without a national museum through 
which to share its history and legacy with the Amer-
ican public. 
SEC. 3. 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: 
(1) $5 GOLD COINS.—Not more than 100,000 
$5 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 500,000 
$1 coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 26.73 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and 
(C) contain at least 90 percent silver. 
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(3) HALF
DOLLAR
CLAD
COINS.—Not more 
than 750,000 half dollar coins, which shall— 
(A) weigh 11.34 grams; 
(B) have a diameter of 1.205 inches; and 
(C) be minted to the specifications for half 
dollar coins, contained in section 5112(b) of 
title 31, United States Code. 
(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 sections 
5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all coins 
minted under this Act shall be considered to be numis-
matic items. 
SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COIN. 
(a) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The design of the coins 
minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the 
traditions, history, and heritage of the United States 
Coast Guard, and its role in securing our Nation 
since 1790. 
(2) DESIGNATIONS
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 ‘‘2020’’; and 
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(C) inscriptions of the words ‘‘Liberty’’, 
‘‘In God We Trust’’, ‘‘United States of Amer-
ica’’, ‘‘E Pluribus Unum’’, and ‘‘Semper 
Paratus’’. 
(b) SELECTION.—The design for the coins minted 
under this Act shall— 
(1) contain motifs that specifically honor the 
United States Coastguardsman of both today and 
yesterday, in wartime and in peace, such designs to 
be consistent with the traditions and heritage of the 
United States Coast Guard, the mission and goals of 
the National Coast Guard Museum, and the mis-
sions and goals of the National Coast Guard Mu-
seum Association; 
(2) be selected by the Secretary, after consulta-
tion with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the 
National Coast Guard Museum Association, and the 
Commission of Fine Arts; and 
(3) be reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advi-
sory 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 FACILITIES.—For each of the 3 coins mint-
ed under this Act, at least one facility of the United States 
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Mint shall be used to strike proof quality coins, while at 
least one other such facility shall be used to strike the 
uncirculated quality coins. 
(c) PERIOD
FOR ISSUANCE.—The Secretary may 
issue coins minted under this Act only during the 1-year 
period beginning on January 1, 2020. 
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 section 7(a) 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. 
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(2) DISCOUNT.—Sale prices with respect to pre-
paid orders under paragraph (1) shall be at a rea-
sonable discount. 
SEC. 7. SURCHARGES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—All sales of coins minted under 
this Act shall include a surcharge as follows: 
(1) A surcharge of $35 per coin for the $5 coin. 
(2) A surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin. 
(3) A surcharge of $5 per coin for the half dol-
lar coin. 
(b) DISTRIBUTION.—Subject to section 5134(f) of 
title 31, United States Code, all surcharges received by 
the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act 
shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the National 
Coast Guard Museum Association to help finance the de-
sign, construction, operations, and maintenance of the Na-
tional Coast Guard Museum. 
(c) AUDITS.—The National Coast Guard Museum 
Association shall be subject to the audit requirements of 
section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with 
regard to the amounts received under subsection (b). 
(d) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 
no surcharge may be included with respect to the issuance 
under this Act of any coin during a calendar year if, as 
of the time of such issuance, the issuance of such coin 
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would result in the number of commemorative coin pro-
grams issued during such year to exceed the annual 2 
commemorative coin program issuance limitation under 
section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, United States Code. The 
Secretary may issue guidance to carry out this subsection. 
SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES. 
The Secretary shall take such actions as may be nec-
essary to ensure that— 
(1) minting and issuing coins under this Act 
will not result in any net cost to the United States 
Government; and 
(2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, 
shall be disbursed to any recipient designated in sec-
tion 7 until the total cost of designing and issuing 
all of the coins authorized by this Act (including 
labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead ex-
penses, marketing, and shipping) is recovered by the 
United States Treasury, consistent with sections 
5112(m) and 5134(f) of title 31, United States 
Code. 
Æ 
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