I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5990 
To grant the Congressional Gold Medal to the troops who defended Bataan 
during World War II. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 9, 2016 
Mr. BEN RAY LUJA´N of New Mexico (for himself, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN 
GRISHAM of New Mexico, and Mr. PEARCE) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addi-
tion to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 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 finds the following: 
(1) Hours after the attacks on Pearl Harbor, 
Hawaii, Imperial Japanese forces launched an at-
tack on the Philippines, cutting off vital lines of 
communication to members of the Armed Forces of 
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the United States (referred to in this Act as the 
‘‘Armed Forces’’) and Filipino troops in the Far 
East under the command of General Douglas Mac-
Arthur. 
(2) On December 8, 1941, the 200th Coast Ar-
tillery Regiment, successors to the New Mexico Na-
tional 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, members of the Armed Forces and 
Philippine troops quickly executed a plan to delay 
the Japanese invasion and defend the Philippines 
against that 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 change the momentum of the war, 
delaying the Japanese timetable to take control of 
the Southeast Pacific for needed war materials. Be-
cause of the heroic actions of the defenders of Ba-
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taan, members of the Armed Forces and other Allied 
forces throughout the Pacific had time to regroup 
and prepare for the successful liberation of the Pa-
cific and the Philippines. 
(6) On April 9, 1942, Major General Edward 
King, whose troops suffered 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 Armed 
Forces 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 prisoner of war camps 
were appalling, leading to increased disease and mal-
nutrition among the prisoners. 
(10) The prisoners at Camp O’Donnell died at 
a rate of nearly 400 per day because of the poor 
conditions of the camp. 
(11) On June 6, 1942, the prisoners at Camp 
O’Donnell were transferred to Camp Cabanatuan, 
north of Camp O’Donnell. 
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(12) Nearly 26,000 of the 50,000 Filipino pris-
oners of war died at Camp O’Donnell and survivors 
were gradually paroled from September through De-
cember 1942. 
(13) Between September of 1942 and December 
of 1944, prisoners of war from the Armed Forces 
who had 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 those ships were mis-
takenly targeted by Allied naval forces because the 
Japanese military convoys were not properly labeled 
as carrying prisoners of war. The sinking of the 
Arisan Maru alone claimed nearly 1,800 lives of 
members of the Armed Forces. 
(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 the United States and the Philippines, hailed 
from various locales across both countries, and rep-
resented true diversity. 
(16) Over the subsequent decades, the veterans 
of Bataan formed support groups, were honored in 
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local and State memorials, and told their stories to 
all people of the United States. 
(17) The United States Navy has continued to 
honor the history and stories of the veterans of Ba-
taan by naming 2 ships after the battle, including 1 
ship that is still in service, the USS Bataan (LHD– 
5), in memory of their valor and honorable resist-
ance against Imperial Japanese forces. 
(18) Many of the survivors of Bataan have died 
and those who remain continue to tell their stories. 
(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 they demonstrated 
during 3 years of capture, imprisonment, and 
atrocious conditions, while maintaining 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 
collective award, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal 
of appropriate design to the troops from the United States 
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and the Philippines who defended Bataan and were subse-
quently prisoners of war, in recognition of their personal 
sacrifice and service during World War II. 
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 
award under subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
(referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike 
the gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and in-
scriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. 
(c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 
gold medal under subsection (a) in honor of the pris-
oners of war at Bataan and the troops from the 
United States and the Philippines who defended Ba-
taan, the gold medal shall be given to the Smithso-
nian Institution, where it shall be displayed as ap-
propriate and made available for research. 
(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 
Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 
make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) 
available for display at other locations, particularly 
at locations that are associated with the prisoners of 
war at Bataan and the troops from the United 
States and the Philippines who defended Bataan. 
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SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 
(a) STRIKING OF DUPLICATES.—Under such regula-
tions as the Secretary may prescribe, the Secretary may 
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. 
(c) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 
sale of duplicate bronze medals under subsection (b) shall 
be deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise 
Fund. 
SEC. 4. STATUS OF MEDALS. 
(a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—Medals struck under this 
Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 
31, United States Code. 
(b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 
5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 
under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 
SEC. 5. 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. 
Æ 
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