James Weldon Johnson Commemorative Coin Act
Bill: H.R.8182 | Sponsor: Rep. Lawson, Al, Jr. (D-FL)
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector

Summary:
James Weldon Johnson Commemorative Coin Act
This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue 400,000 $1 silver coins emblematic of James Weldon Johnson, an influential writer, diplomat, educator, lawyer, and civil rights activist.
All surcharges received by Treasury from the sale of such coins must be paid to Historic Stanton, Inc. and the James Weldon Johnson Foundation.

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a commemorative coin 
                in recognition of James Weldon Johnson.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``James Weldon Johnson Commemorative 
Coin Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) James Weldon Johnson was born on June 17, 1871, in 
        Jacksonville, Florida, to a Bahamian mother, Helen Louise 
        Dillet, and African-American father, James Johnson. He had a 
        younger brother, John Rosamund Johnson. His mother had a large 
        influence on his interest in literature and music.
            (2) At the age of 16, James Weldon Johnson enrolled at 
        Atlanta University, now Clark Atlanta University, a 
        historically Black college, and graduated in 1894.
            (3) James Weldon Johnson returned to Jacksonville following 
        his graduation, where he served as principal of the Stanton 
        School. He expanded the school to include Florida's first high 
        school for African Americans, which opened in 1898.
            (4) In 1895, James Weldon Johnson started the Daily 
        American, Florida's first African-American newspaper.
            (5) During this period, James Weldon Johnson was admitted 
        to the Florida Bar in 1897. He became the first African 
        American to pass the Florida Bar since the Reconstruction Era 
        ended.
            (6) In 1899, James Weldon Johnson wrote the poem ``Lift 
        Every Voice and Sing'' to honor Abraham Lincoln's birthday. His 
        brother, John Rosamund Johnson, composed the music to turn it 
        into a song. In 1919, the National Advancement of Colored 
        People (NAACP) designated the song as the ``Negro National 
        Anthem''.
            (7) As part of the Great Migration, James Weldon Johnson 
        and John Rosamund Johnson moved to Harlem, New York. They 
        became composers for Broadway shows and later became integral 
        figures of the Harlem Renaissance.
            (8) After winning the election, in 1906, President Theodore 
        Roosevelt appointed James Weldon Johnson as U.S. Consul in 
        Venezuela. In 1909, he was appointed as U.S. Consul in 
        Nicaragua by President William Taft.
            (9) Following his diplomatic service, James Weldon Johnson 
        became a field secretary for the NAACP in 1916. In 1920, he 
        became the first African-American Executive Secretary for the 
        NAACP, where he helped increase membership, create new 
        chapters, and organize Civil Rights movements across the 
        country.
            (10) James Weldon Johnson represented the NAACP as the 
        chief Congressional lobbyist to encourage passage of the 
        Representative Leonidas Dyer anti-lynching bill. This bill went 
        on to pass the U.S. House of Representatives in 1922 but failed 
        in the U.S. Senate due to the filibuster.
            (11) In 1930, after serving 10 years in the NAACP, James 
        Weldon Johnson accepted an offer to become the Spence Chair of 
        Creative Literature and Writing at Fisk University, a 
        historically black college in Nashville, Tennessee.
            (12) In 1934, James Weldon Johnson was hired as the first 
        Black professor at New York University, where he taught 
        Creative Literature and Education.
            (13) James Weldon Johnson was an accomplished novelist and 
        poet. He released several poetry collections and novels, among 
        his most popular pieces of literature were God's Trombones: 
        Seven Negro Sermons in Verse and The Autobiography of an Ex-
        Colored Man.
            (14) James Weldon Johnson passed away suddenly in 1938. His 
        funeral was held in Harlem, New York, where over 2,000 people 
        attended.
            (15) James Weldon Johnson's excellence revolutionized 
        literature, music, education, politics, and law. His 
        fearlessness to fight for equality created pathways for African 
        Americans to proudly pursue their aspirations.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

    (a) Denominations.--In recognition and celebration of James Weldon 
Johnson, the Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred 
to as the ``Secretary'') shall mint and issue not more than 400,000 $1 
coins, which shall--
            (1) weigh 26.73 grams;
            (2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
            (3) contain not less than 90-percent silver.
    (b) Legal Tender.--The coin 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 numismatic items.

SEC. 4. DESIGN OF THE COIN.

    (a) In General.--The designs for the coin minted under this Act 
shall be emblematic of James Weldon Johnson and shall bear the name and 
image of James Weldon Johnson.
    (b) Designations and Inscriptions.--On the coin minted under this 
Act there shall be--
            (1) a designation of the denomination of the coin;
            (2) an inscription of the year ``2025'';
            (3) the name and likeness of James Weldon Johnson; and
            (4) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God We 
        Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E Pluribus Unum''.
    (c) Selection.--The designs for the coin minted under this Act 
shall be--
            (1) selected by the Secretary, after consultation with the 
        James Weldon Johnson Foundation, Historic Stanton, Inc., the 
        family of James Weldon Johnson, and Commission of the Fine 
        Arts; and
            (2) reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF THE COIN.

    (a) Quality of the Coin.--The coin minted under this Act shall be 
issued in uncirculated and proof qualities.
    (b) Period for Issuance.--The Secretary may issue the coin minted 
under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 
2025.

SEC. 6. SALE OF THE COIN.

    (a) Sale Price.--The coin issued under this Act shall be sold by 
the Secretary at a price based upon the sum of--
            (1) the face value of the coin;
            (2) the surcharge provided in section 7(a) with respect to 
        such coin; and
            (3) the cost of designing and issuing the coin (including 
        labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses, 
        marketing, and shipping).
    (b) Bulk Sales.--The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the coin 
issued under this Act at a reasonable discount.
    (c) Prepaid Orders.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders 
        for the coin minted under this Act before the issuance of such 
        coin.
            (2) Discount.--Sale prices with respect to prepaid orders 
        under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount.

SEC. 7. SURCHARGES.

    (a) In General.--All sales of the coin minted under this Act shall 
include a surcharge of $10 per coin for the $1 coin.
    (b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United 
States Code, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of 
coin issued under this Act shall be promptly paid equally by the 
Secretary to the Historic Stanton, Inc., and the James Weldon Johnson 
Foundation, for the purpose of strengthening educational outcomes for 
students, with a focus on students of color.
    (c) Audits.--The Historic Stanton, Inc., and James Weldon Johnson 
Foundation shall be subject to the audit requirements of section 
5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with respect to 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 would result in the number of commemorative coin 
programs 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 necessary to ensure 
that--
            (1) minting and issuing the coin under this Act will not 
        result in any net cost to the United States Government; and
            (2) no funds, including applicable surcharges, are 
        disbursed to the recipient designated in section 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 expenses, marketing, and shipping) is 
        recovered by the United States Treasury, consistent with 
        sections 5112(m) and 5134(f) of title 31, United States Code.
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