Commems Collection Modern: What If? 2016 Pro Football Hall Of Fame

Some coin proposals are introduced in the House of Representatives or Senate and then quietly fade away, while others are introduced in both chambers of Congress across multiple Congresses. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin proposals fall into the latter category. Bills calling for Pro Football Hall of Fame commemorative coins were introduced in the 112th, 113th and 114th Congresses, with companion bills offered in the House of Representatives and Senate. Overall, seven bills were introduced.

The bills, introduced between May 2012 and January 2015, called for a three-coin program: 50,000 Gold Half Eagles, 400,000 Silver Dollars and 750,000 Copper-Nickel Clad Half Dollars.

Each of the bills included the following "Findings" section:

"The Congress finds the following:

(1) The Pro Football Hall of Fame's mission is--

(A) to honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to professional football;

(B) to preserve professional football's historic documents and artifacts;

(C) to educate the public regarding the origin, development, and growth of professional football as an important part of American culture; and

(D) to promote the positive values of the sport.

(2) The Pro Football Hall of Fame opened its doors on September 7, 1963. On that day a charter class of 17 players, coaches, and contributors were enshrined. Among the group were such legends as Sammy Baugh, Red Grange, George Halas, Don Hutson, Bronko Nagurski, and Jim Thorpe. Through 2012, there are 273 members who have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Three distinct iconic symbols represent an individual's membership in the Hall of Fame: a bronze bust, a Hall of Fame gold jacket, and a Hall of Fame ring.

(3) The Pro Football Hall of Fame has welcomed nearly 9 million visitors from around the world since opening in 1963. The museum has grown from its original 19,000-square-foot building to a 118,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility as a result of expansions in 1971, 1978, 1995, and most recently in 2011-2013. In addition, major exhibit renovations have been completed in 2003, 2008, and 2009.

(4) The Pro Football Hall of Fame houses the world's largest collection on professional football. Included in the museum's vast collection are more than 20,000 three-dimensional artifacts and more than 20 million pages of documents including nearly 3,000,000 photographic images.

(5) The Pro Football Hall of Fame reaches a world-wide audience of nearly 15,000,000 people annually through visitors to the museum, participants in the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival, three nationally televised events, the Hall of Fame's Web site, social media outlets, special events across the country, and through the museum's Educational Outreach video conferencing programs."

The coins were to feature designs "emblematic of the game of professional football" with their selection by the Commission of Fine Arts and the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and review by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC).

The bills have essentially been duplicates, with the date to be used on the coins shifting from "2016" to "2017" to "2019" over time.

The surcharges collected ($35 on each Gold Half Eagle, $10 on each Silver Dollar and $5.00 on each CuNi Clad Half Dollar) were to be paid to "the Pro Football Hall of Fame, to help finance the expansion and renovation of Pro Football Hall of Fame facilities."

The bills, though each has had dozens of co-sponsors, did not fare well in Congress - none were approved. Only the House bill introduced in February 2012 was ever reported out of Committee (it passed in the House but not the Senate).

Personally, I'm glad that none of these bills has been approved and become Public Law. The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH charges an admission fee (currently $43.50 per adult) - it should be able to finance upkeep on its museum without the help of coin collectors. (For the record: I've felt the same for the Baseball Hall of Fame and Basketball Hall of Fame coins.)


For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other What If? stories about modern- and classic-era US commemorative coin proposals, see: Commems Collection.