H.R. 2257 — National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Coin Act

This section directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue the following coins: (1) up to 50,000 $5 gold coins weighing 8.359 grams, with a 0.850-inch diameter, and containing at least 90% gold; (2) up to 400,000 $1 silver coins weighing 26.73 grams, with a 1.500-inch diameter, and containing at least 90% silver; and (3) up to 750,000 half-dollar clad coins weighing 11.34 grams, with a 1.205-inch diameter, and minted to the specifications in 31 U.S.C. 5112(b). The coins are legal tender, as provided in 31 U.S.C. 5103, and considered numismatic items under 31 U.S.C. 5134 (i.e., eligible for sale by the U.S. Mint at a premium above face value).

This section establishes design requirements for coins minted under this Act, requiring them to be emblematic of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial and the service and sacrifice of firefighters, and mandating inscriptions of the coin's value, the year “2026,” “Liberty,” “In God We Trust,” “United States of America,” and “E Pluribus Unum.” It further directs the Secretary to select the design after consultation with the Commission of Fine Arts and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, with review by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.

This section establishes requirements for coins minted under the Act, as follows: (1) issuance in uncirculated and proof qualities; (2) striking of each quality at only one United States Mint facility; and (3) issuance only during the one-year period beginning January 1, 2026.

This section directs the Secretary to sell coins issued under the Act at a price equal to their face value, the surcharge under section 106(a), and the cost of designing and issuing the coins (including labor, materials, dies, machinery, overhead, marketing, and shipping). The section further requires bulk sales at a reasonable discount and acceptance of prepaid orders before issuance, also at a reasonable discount.

This section establishes surcharges on sales of coins issued under this Act—$35 per $5 coin, $10 per $1 coin, and $5 per half-dollar coin—with all surcharges paid promptly by the Secretary of the Treasury to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (i.e., a nonprofit that supports families of fallen firefighters, firefighter safety training, and public fire education programs), subject to existing audit requirements. It prohibits surcharges for any such coin issued in a calendar year if the issuance would cause the number of commemorative coin programs issued that year to exceed the current annual limit of two.

This section directs the Secretary to ensure that (1) minting and issuing coins under this Act results in no net cost to the U.S. government; and (2) no funds, including surcharges, are disbursed to recipients designated in section 106 until the Treasury recovers all costs of designing and issuing the coins (i.e., labor, materials, dies, machinery use, overhead, marketing, and shipping), consistent with 31 U.S.C. §§5112(m) and 5134(f).