Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Semiquincentennial Commemorative Coin Act”.
Semiquincentennial Commemorative Coin Act
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the semiquincentennial anniversary of the establishment of the United States.
Sec. 2 Findings
The Congress finds the following:
July 4, 1776, was the date on which the unanimous declaration of the thirteen United States of America was passed, declaring the Nation as independent.
July 4, 2026, will mark the 250th anniversary of us declaring our independence.
It is common practice to celebrate moments such as this in the history of our country through the minting of a commemorative coin.
Sec. 3 Coin specifications
Denominations— The Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the “Secretary”) shall mint and issue the following coins in commemoration of the semiquincentennial anniversary of the establishment of the United States:
$25.00 Gold Coins— Not more than 100,000 $25.00 coins, which shall—
weigh 8.359 grams;
have a diameter of 0.850 inches; and
contain 90 percent gold and 10 percent alloy.
$2.50 Silver Coins— Not more than 500,000 $2.50 coins, which shall—
weigh 26.73 grams;
have a diameter of 1.500 inches; and
contain not less than 90 percent silver.
25-cent clad coins— Not more than 750,000 quarter dollar coins, which shall—
weigh 5.67 grams;
have a diameter of 0.955 inches; and
be minted to the specifications for quarter dollar coins, contained in section 5112(b) of title 31, United States Code.
Proof silver $2.50 coins— The Secretary shall mint and issue not more than 100,000 proof silver $2.50 coins, each of which shall—
weigh 5 ounces;
have a diameter of 3 inches; and
contain .999 fine silver.
Legal tender— The coins minted under this Act shall be legal tender, as provided in section 5103 of title 31, United States Code.
Numismatic items— For 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.
Mintage limit exception— If the Secretary determines, based on independent, market based research conducted by the designated recipient organization identified in section 7(b) that the mintage levels described under this subsection are not adequate to meet public demand, the Secretary may increase the mintage levels as the Secretary determines is necessary to meet public demand.
Sec. 4 Designs of coins
Design requirements—
In general— The designs of the coins minted under this Act shall be emblematic of the semiquincentennial anniversary of the establishment of the United States of America and celebrate 250 years of our Nation.
Designation and inscriptions— On each coin minted under this Act, there shall be—
a designation of the value of the coin;
an inscription of the years “1776–2026”; and
inscriptions of the words “Liberty”, “In God We Trust”, “United States of America”, and “E Pluribus Unum”.
Selection— The designs for the coins minted under this Act shall be—
selected by the Secretary, after consultation with the Semiquincentennial Commission, the America 250 Foundation, and the Commission of Fine Arts; and
reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee.
Sec. 5 Issuance of coins
Quality of coins— Coins minted under this Act shall be issued in uncirculated and proof qualities.
Mint facilities— Only 1 facility of the United States Mint may be used to strike any particular quality of the coins minted under this Act.
Period for issuance— The Secretary may issue coins under this Act only during the period beginning on January 1, 2026, and ending on December 31, 2026.
Sec. 6 Sale of coins
Sale price— The coins issued under this Act shall be sold by the Secretary at a price equal to the sum of—
the face value of the coins;
the surcharge provided in section 7(a) with respect to such coins; and
the cost of designing and issuing the coins (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping).
Bulk sales— The Secretary shall make bulk sales of the coins issued under this Act at a reasonable discount.
Prepaid orders—
In general— The Secretary shall accept prepaid orders for the coins minted under this Act before the issuance of such coins.
Discount— Sale prices with respect to prepaid orders under paragraph (1) shall be at a reasonable discount.
Sec. 7 Surcharges
In general— All sales of coins issued under this Act shall include a surcharge as follows:
A surcharge of $35 per coin for the gold coins.
A surcharge of $10 per coin for the silver coins.
A surcharge of $5 per coin for the quarter dollar coins.
A surcharge of $50 per coin for the $2.50 5 ounce proof silver coins.
Distribution— Subject to section 5134(f) of title 31, United States Code, all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act shall be paid to the America 250 Foundation to fund the restoration, rehabilitation, and interpretation of units of America’s National Park System and its related areas, as a legacy of the United States Semiquincentennial commemoration.
Audits— The America 250 Foundation shall be subject to the audit requirements of section 5134(f)(2) of title 31, United States Code, with regard to the amounts received under subsection (b).
Limitation— Notwithstanding subsection (a), no surcharge may be included with respect to the issuance under this Act of any coin during a calendar year if, as of the time of such issuance, the issuance of such coin would result in the number of commemorative coin programs issued during such year to exceed the annual 2 commemorative coin program issuance limitation under section 5112(m)(1) of title 31, United States Code. The Secretary of the Treasury may issue guidance to carry out this subsection.
Sec. 8 Financial assurances
The Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure that—
minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in any net cost to the United States Government; and
no funds, including applicable surcharges, shall be disbursed to any recipient designated in section 7(b) until the total cost of designing and issuing all of the coins authorized by this Act (including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead expenses, marketing, and shipping) is recovered by the United States Treasury, consistent with sections 5112(m) and 5134(f) of title 31, United States Code.