The journey of the 1992 Christopher Columbus Quincentenary commemorative coin program experienced a bit of legislative overlap in both chambers of Congress. Here's quick look at the bills introduced in each:
Senate BillJust days after the original White House Bicentennial coin bill was introduced in the House of Representatives ("House") in September 1991 (during the 102nd Congress), Alan J. Dixon introduced a Columbus coin bill in the Senate.
The bill was similar to the bill he introduced in the Senate during the 101st Congress. (Read about it here:
1992 Christopher Columbus Quincentenary - Precursor #2.)
The bill called for up to 500,000 Gold Half Eagles, up to 5 million Silver Dollars and up to 5 million Copper-Nickel ("CuNi") Clad Half Dollars. In his previous bill, Dixon proposed up to 10 million Clad Half Dollars - quite a reduction!
The Gold Half Eagle was to feature a design "emblematic of the quincentenary of Columbus' encounter with the lands and peoples of the New World." The Silver Dollar was to feature a design "emblematic of the New World Heritage of America and the New World's many contributions to the Old World, such as agricultural crops." The Clad Half Dollar was to depict a design "emblematic of the Old World's contributions to the Americas, such as the horse and new forms of architecture." The designs would have created a 'full circle' story between the Old World and New World related to Columbus' initial voyage.
The above specifications could be considered primarily intended for the obverse of each coin, as the bill specified that "the American Eagle shall be represented on the reverse side of the coin."
The Secretary of the Treasury was authorized to select the designs for each of the coins after consulting with the Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Jubilee Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts. The Issue Period for the coins was specified as on or after October 12, 1991 and continuing for 18 months after the first release.
The individual surcharge to be included in the Issue Price of each coin continued to be $35/$7/$1, respectively. Collected surcharges were to be deposited in an endowment fund for use by the Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Scholarship Foundation to develop, direct and support "educational activities for secondary students and postsecondary students."
The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs but did not progress further.
House of Representatives BillIn addition to the Dixon bill in the Senate, Esteban Edward Torres (D-CA) introduced a coin bill in the House in February 1992. The bill mirrored the provisions of the bill that was authorized in May 1992.
Note: The bill was introduced prior to the previous House bill being approved.It included the White House Bicentennial Silver Dollar, the World Cup USA three-coin commemorative program, a Silver Medal for Persian Gulf Conflict veterans, a James Madison/Bill of Rights three-coin program and the Christopher Columbus Quincentenary three-coin program.
The Columbus program was to include up to 500,000 Gold Half Eagles, up to 4 million Silver Dollars and up to 6 million Copper-Nickel ("CuNi") Clad Half Dollars - as in the authorized legislation.
The bill also mirrored the previous House bill in terms of coin design, surcharges, sponsor/beneficiary, issue period, versions (i.e, Proof and Uncirculated of each denomination) and mint facility requirements.
The bill was referred to the House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs, with a further referral to its Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs and Coinage. With the positive actions on the amended White House Bicentennial bill, however, the Torres bill did not progress beyond its Committee referral.
To catch up on the full story of the 1992 Christopher Columbus Quincentenary coin program, see:
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Index To 1992 Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coin ProgramFor other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other Columbus Quincentenary stories, see:
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