S. 262 — Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds Congressional Gold Medal Act

This section sets forth congressional findings on Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds, including his service in the 422nd Infantry Regiment during World War II; his capture during the Battle of the Bulge and internment at Stalag IX-A, where he commanded 1,292 prisoners of war; his defiance of Nazi orders to segregate approximately 200 Jewish-American prisoners, saving their lives by declaring "We are all Jews here" and invoking the Geneva Convention; his 100 days in captivity, later National Guard service in Korea, and death in 1985 without publicizing his actions; his posthumous recognition by Yad Vashem as the first U.S. Armed Forces member and one of only five Americans named "Righteous Among the Nations"; and the 80th anniversary of World War II's conclusion and Holocaust atrocities, and 40th anniversary of his death, in 2025.

This section authorizes the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal of appropriate design to Roddie Edmonds in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during World War II. The Secretary of the Treasury must strike the medal, which following presentation is given to Pastor Christopher Waring Edmonds or Roddie Edmonds's next of kin.

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

This section designates medals struck under this Act as (1) national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code (i.e., official medals produced by the U.S. Mint under congressional authority), and (2) numismatic items for purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of such title (i.e., collectibles eligible for Mint production and sale).

This section authorizes charges against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for the costs of striking medals under this Act and directs deposit of proceeds from the sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 into that fund.