Continuing the Medal of Honor ("MoH") coin discussion...Once the House-passed MoH coin bill was received in the Senate, it was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
Once again, Committee consideration was slow. After five months without a report, Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) asked that the Committee be discharged from consideration of the bill. No objection was raised over the request, so it was accepted and the bill was considered.
Senator Reid requested the bill be passed via Unanimous Consent. As no objection was raised, the bill was formally considered and passed - quick and easy!
The bill was examined and signed in each chamber, then sent to the President for approval. US President Barack Obama signed the coin bill into law on November 6, 2009.
In April 2009, John F. Kerry (D-MA) introduced a related bill in the US Senate. It included the same coin specifications, the same design guidelines, the same surcharges and the same sponsor/financial beneficiary. It included, however, minor variations in the "Findings" section:
- It separated Finding #1 of the House bill into two, separating the MoH's Navy origins from those of the Army and Air Force.
- It reformatted Findings #2 and #7 to feature sub-bullets that present the same content. The changes enhance the readability of the Findings, but do not alter their content.
The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. The bill did not progress, however, as the Senate acted on the related House bill.
For more information about the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation, see:
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Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation I discuss the MoH coins here:
2011 Medal of Honor - The CoinsFor other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more Modern Commemorative stories, see:
Commems Collection 
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