In the middle of July 2019, quietly, without headlines or fanfare, two members of opposing parties introduced a Bill. When was the last time a Democrat and Republican agreed upon anything in this country? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Schoolhouse Rock educated us in the late 1970s, \u201cit\u2019s a long, long wait while I\u2019m sitting in committee but I know I’ll be a law someday, at least I hope and pray that I will, but today I am still just a bill.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Too little, too late? To refresh, a bill is introduced to Congress and then must be considered by a committee before it is possibly sent on to the House and Senate for voting. Once it passes, it has to be signed into law by the President. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So what\u2019s this bill about? Well, H.R. 3757: 1921 Silver Dollar Commemorative Coin Act<\/a> proposes to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the centennial of the minting of the Morgan dollar and the Peace dollar. What a great idea! <\/p>\n\n\n\n As coin enthusiasts know, in 1921, the Mint revived the Morgan Silver Dollar after a 17-year gap only to be replaced the same year with the Peace Silver Dollar. Ironically, it was numismatists who rallied back in 1921 to lobby the Mint to issue a coin that memorialized the peace following World War I. And even though they failed to get Congress to pass a bill requiring the redesign, they were able to persuade government officials to take action. Will lightning strike twice? I doubt it. Getting any politician to agree to anything, especially something presented by such a genteel crowd, like numismatists, would be something short of miraculous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can you say grassroots effort? Who\u2019s behind this bill anyway? Well, several years ago, Michael Moran, numismatic author and researcher who has served on the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) proposed the idea of a 2021 Peace Dollar to commemorative the 100th<\/sup> anniversary of the first Peace Silver Dollar. Thomas Uram, the current chair of the CCAC agreed, but also felt they should commemorate the 100th<\/sup> anniversary of the last Morgan Silver Dollar. Of course, the Mint was in favor of the idea, commemorative coins are the meat and potatoes of the Mint\u2019s business – even though recent offerings have fallen flat – but that\u2019s another story. So, they found a couple of Congressmen to pitch it to – and viola \u2013 we have a bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, as collectors know, Commemorative coins always come with a surcharge. So, where\u2019s the money going here? Well, a $10 surcharge on a one-ounce silver coin is being split up thusly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n CoinWeek lists the ANA as being 24,000 members strong. Those members better get to writing their congressmen. Because even with a slim chance of this bill becoming law, we all know how fast the Mint works. A quick look at the new American Innovation Dollars \u2013 ahem, the final designs were revealed on Aug. 14, 2019, by the Mint Director at the ANA World\u2019s Fair of Money, there are no scheduled release dates for any of the four 2019 coins; one wonders if they\u2019ll have to backdate the coins! Of course, the Morgan and Peace Dollars should be easier \u2013 they\u2019re already designed! Then again, it\u2019s suspected that backdating is what happened with the original 1921 Peace Silver Dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Back in December 1921, a public uproar over the design at the eleventh hour necessitated a revision to the plaster model by Mint Chief Engraver Morgan and the first Peace Silver Dollar was struck on December 28, 1921. The Mint later reported that 1,006,473 pieces were struck in 1921 \u2013 an astonishing accomplishment in 1921! The Peace Silver Dollar was officially released into circulation on January 3, 1922.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We can only assume the Mint has perfected striking High Relief coins, after all, these are commemoratives, not circulating dollars. Then again, they\u2019re silver, not gold, like recent High Relief releases. In addition, in 1922, the Mint quickly discovered that striking High Reliefs coins were problematic. Excessive pressure had to be used on the rounds to bring out the details, and as a result, the dies broke very quickly. By January 10, 1922, production of the dollar halted. The relief was reduced \u2013 some say with the help of a technician from Tiffany \u2013 and the new low relief coins were released in February 1922.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Anyway, back to the bill. It\u2019s not just politics jeopardizing the 2021 coins \u2013 it\u2019s well, politics. You see, the Mint only authorizes TWO Commemorative coin programs per year, and right now, the following bills are on the floor:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \n\nNow, do I see the “Greatest Of All Time” Muhammad Ali beating out the Morgan and Peace Silver Dollars? No. But are the Morgan and Peace Silver Dollars considered one program or two? Well, I\u2019m guessing one, based on how the bill was written:\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n SEC. 3. COIN SPECIFICATIONS.<\/strong><\/p> (a) $1 Silver Coins.\u2014The Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the \u201cSecretary\u201d) shall mint and issue not more than a total of 500,000 $1 coins in commemoration of the Morgan dollar and the Peace dollar, each of which shall\u2014 (b) Legal Tender.\u2014The coins minted under this Act shall be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United States Code.<\/p> (c) Numismatic Items.\u2014For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all coins minted under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.<\/p> SEC. 4. DESIGN OF COINS.<\/strong><\/p> (a) Design Requirements.\u2014 SEC. 5. ISSUANCE OF COINS.<\/strong><\/p> (a) Quality Of Coins.\u2014Coins minted under this Act shall be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities.<\/p> (b) Mint Facility.\u2014Notwithstanding section 5131 of title 31, United States Code, it is the sense of Congress that if the Secretary determines it to be feasible and cost effective, the Secretary may mint some of the coins minted under this Act at the Nevada State Museum (formerly a United States Mint facility) located in Carson City, Nevada.<\/p> (c) Period For Issuance.\u2014The Secretary may issue coins under this Act only during the 1-year period beginning on January 1, 2021. <\/p>https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/116th-congress\/house-bill\/3757\/text?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%223757%22%5D%7D&r=1&s=3<\/a> <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n So, Brilliant Uncirculated and Proof coins? Now I know it hasn\u2019t been done with commemoratives, but judging how popular this program will be, can\u2019t you also see Reverse Proof and Enhanced Uncirculated Coins? And the possibility of a CC Mint Mark? Holy Smokes, these coins will be HOT! Perhaps because the concept and the bill were written by two highly knowledgeable and avid collectors. Could the Mint screw this up and come up with another dud? I don\u2019t think so. Which is why it\u2019s imperative that the Mint and the ANA push this agenda. Collectors like you and myself have been patiently waiting for a real collectible coin \u2013 one we can treasure and be proud to own. And if you collect, you know I\u2019m not just Mint-bashing. Imagine if you will, you are at the helm to launch the 2019 Apollo 11 Commemorative Coin program. Are you going to be lazy and use the same design for the $5 Gold, the Silver Dollar, and the Clad Half Dollar? NO! Yes, that worked for the 2014 Baseball program, but they were the first curved coins! The Mint could have come up with three different breathtaking designs for Apollo 11. The United States Mint should start taking a page out of the Canada Mint\u2019s school of marketing and design. But I digress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Coin Collectors, UNITE! If your numismatic mouth is watering at the thought of 2021 Morgan and Peace Silver Dollars, write your local representative and ask them to support H.R. 3757<\/a>. You can find out who they are here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the middle of July 2019, quietly, without headlines or fanfare, two members of opposing parties introduced a Bill. When was the last time a Democrat and Republican agreed upon anything in this country? As Schoolhouse Rock educated us in the late 1970s, \u201cit\u2019s a long, long wait while I\u2019m sitting in committee but I know […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"author_meta":{"display_name":"Zak","author_link":"https:\/\/thepatrioticmint.com\/blog\/author\/zak\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/thepatrioticmint.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1921-morgan-dollar-lead-300x159.jpg","yoast_head":"\n
(1) weigh 26.73 grams;
(2) have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
(3) contain not less than 90 percent silver.<\/p>
(1) IN GENERAL.\u2014The designs of the coins minted under this Act shall be representative of either the Morgan dollar or the Peace dollar.
(2) DESIGNATION AND INSCRIPTIONS.\u2014On each coin minted under this Act, there shall be\u2014
(A) a designation of the value of the coin;
(B) an inscription of the year \u201c2021\u201d; and
(C) inscriptions of the words \u201cLiberty\u201d, \u201cIn God We Trust\u201d, \u201cUnited States of America\u201d, and \u201cE Pluribus Unum\u201d.
>>> <\/p>