Commems Collection Modern: 1983-84 Los Angeles Olympics - The Hearing / Part 1

Continuing the story of the 1983-84 Los Angeles Olympic coins...


A Hearing was held by the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs in July 1981. The Hearing featured a list of attendees that could be likened to a numismatic 'All-Star Team' that included:

- Angela Buchanan, Treasurer of the United States
- William Simon, President US Olympic Committee
- Col. Donald Miller, Executive Director, US Olympic Committee
- Peter Ueberroth, President, Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee ("LAOOC")
- Harry Usher, Executive Vice President, Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee
- Multiple former Olympic Athletes
- George Hatie, President, American Numismatic Association
- Arthur Friedberg, Vice President, Capital Coin Co. Inc. and Coin & Currency Institute
- Chester Krause, Krause Publications

Note: The Hearing for the LA Olympic games coin program was long and full of testimony and written statements from supporters and opponents. It is impossible for me to cover it in depth here, but I intend to give a 'flavor' of its proceedings as best I can over three parts."

Committee Chair Edwin Jacob "Jake" Garn (R-UT), one of the Cranston bill's co-sponsors, began the Hearing with comments that made clear his support for the measure. He stated,

"Our athletes acquire the skill to compete in the Olympic games without the benefit of a system which encourages and subsidizes their talent. I believe we should at least provide some financial support to the Olympic organizations responsible for staging the games and training and selecting our athlete."

He continued,

"[The bill] is appealing because it both commemorates the summer Olympics scheduled to be held in Los Angeles and because proceeds from the sale of the commemorative coins would be a significant source of revenue used to help stage the Los Angeles games and aid amateur athletics."

After Garn, Angela Buchanan, Treasurer of the United States, was called. Among her opening comments:

"Let me first state that the Department of the Treasury wholeheartedly supports the young men and women training for the 1984 Olympic Games. The personal sacrifice, discipline, and hours of training are admired and respected by all Americans.

"As an indication of this support, the Department of the Treasury is in favor of commemorative coins honoring the 1984 Olympic games. The Department, however, has serious reservations about the magnitude, scope, and nature of [the bill] and does not consider this bill, as proposed, to be in the best interests of the public or the Government."

Buchanan then went on to provide specific details regarding the Treasury's objections to the coin proposal. A core objection centered around the fact that the Mint was to produce the coins and then turn them over to the LAOOC who planned to use a third-party marketer to handle promotion and distribution of the coins.

Buchanan argued,

"...the Department of the Treasury, as custodian of the nation's coins and currency, has an obligation to the American people to assure not only the quality of its coins, but also the proper and equitable distribution of its products."

Buchanan also expressed the willingness of the Treasury to work with the appropriate designees to develop amendments to the coin bill that would make it one the Treasury could support.

William Simon was next to testify. In his position as President, US Olympic Committee, Simon provided the Senate Committee with background and history regarding the US Olympic Committee and its many accomplishments. He also discussed the importance of supporting US amateur athletics and working with the amateur athletic programs of other nations.

As part of his concluding remarks, Simon stated:

"We need more facilities for certain sports in this country. We need more sports programs for disadvantaged youths to hone their skills. We need to improve on the training center concept and develop additional training centers. We need to broaden the participation at the sports festival. We need to develop and improve our sports medicine program. We need to create greater public awareness thst the USOC provides programs for everyone of all ages and levels of ability, not only for the elite athlete. And we need to provide opportunities for, perhaps most importantly of all, the most determined of all, the handicapped.

"This commemorative coin program for the Los Angeles Olympic Games will serve as a means to better achieve these and other goals. A coin program commemorating the Games draws the distinction between the Governmnet doing nothing in support of amateur sports with the alternative of direct appropriations."

Quite a set of objectives for a commemorative coin program!


See 1983-84 Los Angeles Olympics - The Hearing / Part 2 to continue the story of William Simon and other witnesses at the Hearing.


For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more modern commemorative coin stories, see: Commems Collection