Benjamin Franklin Commemorative Coin Act

        [Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3204 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

H.R.3204

One Hundred Eighth Congress

of the

United States of America

AT THE SECOND SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the twentieth day of January, two thousand and four

An Act

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration
of the tercentenary of the birth of Benjamin Franklin, and for other
purposes.

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 ``Benjamin Franklin Commemorative Coin
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

The Congress finds the following:
(1) Benjamin Franklin made historic contributions to the
development of our Nation in a number of fields: government,
business, science, communications, and the arts.
(2) Benjamin Franklin was the only Founding Father to sign all
of our Nation's organizational documents.
(3) Benjamin Franklin spent his career as a successful printer,
which included printing the official currency for the colonies of
Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland.
(4) Franklin's ``Essay on Paper Currency'' of 1741 proposed
methods to fix the rate of exchange between the colonies and Great
Britain.
(5) Benjamin Franklin, during the American Revolution, designed
the first American coin, the ``Continental'' penny.
(6) Franklin made ``A Penny Saved is A Penny Earned'' a
household phrase to describe the American virtues of hard work and
economical living.
(7) Franklin played a major role in the design of the Great
Seal of the United States, which appears on the One Dollar Bill and
other major American symbols.
(8) Before 1979, Benjamin Franklin was the only non-president
of the United States whose image graced circulating coin and paper
currency.
(9) The official United States half dollar from 1948-1963
showed Franklin's portrait, as designed by John Sinnock.
(10) Franklin's ``Way to Wealth'' has come to symbolize
America's commitment to free enterprise.
(11) The Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia
houses the first steam printing machine for coinage, used by the
United States Mint, which was placed in service in 1836, the 130th
anniversary year of Franklin's birth.
(12) In 1976, Franklin Hall in The Franklin Institute Science
Museum in Philadelphia was named the Official National Monument to
the great patriot, scientist and inventor.
(13) The Franklin Institute and four other major Franklin-
related Philadelphia cultural institutions joined hands in 2000 to
organize international programs to commemorate the forthcoming
300th anniversary of Franklin's birth in 2006.
(14) The Congress passed the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary Act
in 2002, creating a panel of distinguished Americans, with its
Secretariat in Philadelphia, to work with the private sector in
recommending appropriate Tercentenary programs.

SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.

(a) Denominations.--The Secretary of the Treasury (hereinafter in
this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall mint and issue the
following coins:
(1) $1 silver coins with younger franklin image on obverse.--
Not more than 250,000 $1 coins bearing the designs specified in
section 4(a)(2), each of which shall--
(A) weigh 26.73 grams;
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(C) contain 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper.
(2) $1 silver coins with older franklin image on obverse.--Not
more than 250,000 $1 coins bearing the designs specified in section
4(a)(3), each of which shall--
(A) weigh 26.73 grams;
(B) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(C) 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 5136 of title 31,
United States Code, all coins minted under this Act shall be considered
to be numismatic items.
(d) Use of the United States Mint at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.--
It is the sense of the Congress that the coins minted under this Act
should be struck at the United States Mint at Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, to the greatest extent possible.

SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS.

(a) Design Requirements.--
(1) In general.--The design of the coins minted under this Act
shall be emblematic of the life and legacy of Benjamin Franklin.
(2) $1 coins with younger franklin image.--
(A) Obverse.--The obverse of the coins minted under section
3(a)(1) shall bear the image of Benjamin Franklin as a young
man.
(B) Reverse.--The reverse of the coins minted under section
3(a)(1) shall bear an image related to Benjamin Franklin's role
as a patriot and a statesman.
(3) $1 coins with older franklin image.--
(A) Obverse.--The obverse of the coins minted under section
3(a)(2) shall bear the image of Benjamin Franklin as an older
man.
(B) Reverse.--The reverse of the coins minted under section
3(a)(2) shall bear an image related to Benjamin Franklin's role
in developing the early coins and currency of the new country.
(4) 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 year ``2006''; and
(C) inscriptions of the words ``Liberty'', ``In God We
Trust'', ``United States of America'', and ``E Pluribus Unum''.
(b) 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 Coinage Advisory Committee
established under section 5135 of title 31, United States Code.

SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS.

(a) Quality of Coins.--Coins minted under this Act shall be issued
in uncirculated and proof qualities.
(b) Commencement of Issuance.--The Secretary may issue coins minted
under this Act beginning January 1, 2006, except that the Secretary may
initiate sales of such coins, without issuance, before such date.
(c) Termination of Minting Authority.--No coins shall be minted
under this Act after December 31, 2006.

SEC. 6. SALE OF COINS.

(a) Sale Price.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
coins issued under this Act shall be sold by the Secretary at a price
equal to the face value, plus the cost of designing and issuing such
coins (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead
expenses, and marketing).
(b) Bulk Sales.--The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the coins
issued under this Act at a reasonable discount.
(c) Prepaid Orders at a Discount.--
(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) Sales of Single Coins and Sets of Coins.--Coins of each design
specified under section 4 may be sold separately or as a set containing
a coin of each such design.

SEC. 7. SURCHARGES.

(a) Surcharge Required.--All sales shall include a surcharge of $10
per coin.
(b) Distribution.--Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United
States Code, all surcharges which are received by the Secretary from
the sale of coins issued under this Act shall be promptly paid by the
Secretary to the Franklin Institute for purposes of the Benjamin
Franklin Tercentenary Commission.
(c) Audits.--The Franklin Institute shall be subject to the audit
requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code,
with regard to the amounts received by the Institute pursuant to
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 (as in effect on the date of the enactment of this
Act). The Secretary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out
this subsection.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.