H.R. 1087 — United States Colored Troops Congressional Gold Medal Act

This section establishes the short title of the Act as the “United States Colored Troops Congressional Gold Medal Act.”

This section sets forth congressional findings on the service of African Americans in the Union Army and Union Navy during the Civil War, including that approximately 200,000 African-American men served in the Union Army, 19,000 served in the Union Navy, and 18 members of the United States Colored Troops (USCT) and 8 African-American sailors received the Medal of Honor. It also notes that African-American women served in support roles but were not allowed to formally enlist, that the Union Army first received African-American men on January 1, 1863, and that General Order Number 143 of May 22, 1863, established the Bureau of Colored Troops for recruiting and organizing USCT regiments. The findings further describe the historical exclusion of African Americans’ Civil War contributions from public memory and reference Public Law No. 102–412 (106 Stat. 2104), which authorized a memorial on federal land in the District of Columbia to honor African Americans who served with Union forces during the Civil War.

This section authorizes the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal, on behalf of Congress, to the African Americans who served with Union forces during the Civil War, collectively, in recognition of their bravery and outstanding service. It directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike 1 gold medal of appropriate design with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions determined by the Secretary, and provides that, after the award, the medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution for display and research. It also states the sense of Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the medal available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations associated with the United States Colored Troops.

This section authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell bronze duplicates of the gold medal produced under section 3 at a price sufficient to cover the full cost of production, including labor, materials, dies, machinery use, and overhead expenses.

This section provides that medals struck under the Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code, and treats all such medals as numismatic items under 31 U.S.C. § 5134. (Thus, the United States Mint may account for the medals through the Numismatic Public Enterprise Fund and related numismatic operations and programs.)

This section authorizes the United States Mint to charge the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for the costs of striking the medals under this Act and requires that proceeds from the sale of duplicate bronze medals under section 4 be deposited into that fund.