H.R. 945 — To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the Freedom Riders, collectively, in recognition of their unique contribution to Civil Rights, which inspired a revolutionary movement for equality in interstate travel.

This section states congressional findings recognizing the Freedom Riders' 1961 nonviolent campaign—initiated by the Congress of Racial Equality from Washington, DC, to New Orleans, LA—to enforce the Supreme Court's Boynton v. Virginia decision against segregated interstate bus and rail facilities, the violence they endured (including firebombings in Anniston, Alabama, on May 14, 1961), and the resulting Interstate Commerce Commission order, effective November 1, 1961, that banned segregation in such facilities based on race, color, or creed.

This section authorizes the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to present a Congressional Gold Medal of appropriate design, on behalf of Congress, to the Freedom Riders collectively in recognition of their contribution to civil rights and equality in interstate travel. The section directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike the medal and requires its transfer to the Smithsonian Institution following the presentation for display and research, with a sense of Congress that it be displayed at locations associated with the Freedom Riders.

This section authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell bronze duplicates of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 2 at a price sufficient to cover the costs of production, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.

This section designates medals struck pursuant to this Act as national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code, and as numismatic items for purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code. (Thus, the U.S. Mint may produce, issue, and sell such medals under its statutory authorities for official medals and numismatic items.)

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