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Thomas Alva Edison Sesquicentennial Commemorative Coin Act
H. R. 5255 To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the birth of Thomas Alva Edison.
Summary
This bill authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to mint up to 750,000 commemorative one-dollar silver coins to mark the 150th anniversary of Thomas Edison's birth in 1997. The coins will be produced in both uncirculated and proof qualities and sold with a $10 surcharge per coin beginning January 1, 1997 through December 31, 1997. The bill requires a design competition for the coins, which will feature Edison's likeness on the obverse. Surcharges from sales will be distributed to seven Edison-related museums and historic sites, with any excess going to the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
6 cosponsors
Actions (3)
- Nov 8, 1994 Referred to the Subcommittee on Consumer Credit and Insurance. · house
- Oct 7, 1994 Referred to the House Committee on Banking, Finance + Urban Affrs. · house
- Oct 7, 1994 Introduced in House
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 7, 1994
Mr. Bonior (for himself, Mr. Brooks, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Gillmor, Mr. Payne of New Jersey, and Mr. Goss) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the birth of Thomas Alva Edison.
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 “Thomas Alva Edison Sesquicentennial Commemorative Coin Act”.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress hereby finds the following:
(1) Thomas Alva Edison, one of America’s greatest inventors, was born on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio.
(2) Thomas A. Edison’s inexhaustible energy and genius produced more than 1,300 inventions in his lifetime, including the incandescent light bulb and the phonograph.
(3) In 1928, Thomas A. Edison received the Congressional gold medal “for development and application of inventions that have revolutionized civilization in the last century”.
(4) 1997 will mark the sesquicentennial of Thomas A. Edison’s birth.
SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.
(a) $1 Silver Coins.—In commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the birth of Thomas A. Edison, the Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the “Secretary”) shall mint and issue not more than 750,000 1 dollar coins, which shall—
(1) weigh 26.73 grams;
(2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(3) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent 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. 4. SOURCES OF BULLION.
The Secretary shall obtain silver for minting coins under this Act only from stockpiles established under the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act.
SEC. 5. DESIGN OF COINS.
(a) Design Requirements.—
(1) In general.—The design of the coins minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the many inventions made by Thomas A. Edison throughout his prolific life.
(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 years 1847-1997”; and
(C) inscriptions of the words “Liberty”, “In God We Trust”, “United States of America”, and “E Pluribus Unum”.
(3) Obverse of coin.—The obverse of each coin minted under this Act shall bear the likeness of Thomas A. Edison.
(b) Design Competition.—Before the end of the 3-month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct an open design competition for the design of the obverse and the reverse of the coins minted under this Act.
(c) Selection.—The design for the coins minted under this Act shall be—
(1) selected by the Secretary after consultation with the Commission of Fine Arts; and
(2) reviewed by the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee.
SEC. 6. 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 quality of the coins minted under this Act.
(c) Commencement of Issuance.—The Secretary may issue coins minted under this Act beginning January 1, 1997.
(d) Termination of Minting Authority.—No coins may be minted under this Act after December 31, 1997.
SEC. 7. 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 prepaid orders under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount.
(d) Surcharges.—All sales shall include a surcharge of $10 per coin.
SEC. 8. GENERAL WAIVER OF PROCUREMENT REGULATIONS.
(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.—Subsection (a) shall not relieve any person entering into a contract under the authority of this Act from complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity.
SEC. 9. DISTRIBUTION OF SURCHARGES.
(a) In General.—The first $7,000,000 of the surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act shall be promptly paid by the Secretary as follows:
(1) \1/7\ to the Edison Birthplace Association, Incorporated, in Milan, Ohio, to assist in such association’s efforts to raise an endowment as a permanent source of support for the repair and maintenance of the Thomas A. Edison birthplace, a national historic landmark.
(2) \1/7\ to the Museum of Arts and History, in the city of Port Huron, Michigan for the endowment and construction of a special museum on Thomas A. Edison’s life in Port Huron.
(3) \1/7\ to the National Park Service for use in protecting, restoring, and cataloguing historic documents and objects at Thomas A. Edison’s “invention factory” in West Orange, New Jersey.
(4) \1/7\ to the Edison Plaza Museum in Beaumont, Texas, for expanding educational programs on Thomas A. Edison and for the repair and maintenance of the museum.
(5) \1/7\ to the Edison Winter Home and Museum in Fort Myers, Florida, for historic preservation, restoration, and maintenance of Thomas A. Edison’s historic home and chemical laboratory.
(6) \1/7\ to the Edison Memorial Tower in Edison, New Jersey, for the preservation, restoration, and expansion of the tower and museum.
(7) \1/7\ to Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan, for use in maintaining and expanding displays and educational programs associated with Thomas A. Edison.
(b) Excess Payable to the National Numismatic Collection.—After payment of the amount required under subsection (a), the Secretary shall pay the remaining surcharges to the National Museum of American History, Washington, D.C., for the support of the National Numismatic Collection at the museum.
(c) Audits.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall have the right to examine such books, records, documents, and other data of any organization which receives any payment from the Secretary under this section, as may be related to the expenditures of amounts paid under this subsection.
SEC. 10. FINANCIAL ASSURANCES.
(a) No Net Cost to the Government.—The Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure that minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in any net cost to the United States Government.
(b) Payment for Coins.—A coin shall not be issued under this Act unless the Secretary has received—
(1) full payment for the coin;
(2) security satisfactory to the Secretary to indemnify the United States for full payment; or
(3) a guarantee of full payment satisfactory to the Secretary from a depository institution whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the National Credit Union Administration Board. <all>
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