Two bills, one introduced into the House of Representatives and the other into the Senate, call for the creation of commemorative coins for the National Women’s Hall of Fame. H.R. 1648 was introduced into the House by Representative Joseph Morelle (D-NY25) on March 8, 2021 and currently has 73 cosponsors. Meanwhile, S. 867 was introduced to the Senate on March 18, 2021 by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and currently has no cosponsors.
The two bills add to the lengthy list of numismatic related legislation currently being considered by the 117th Congress.
While the text of the bills are not available currently, it will likely follow the standard request for commemorative coins in legislation. That is, there will likely be a $5 gold coin, a $1 silver coin, and a $.50 Clad half dollar coin. We also have the insights from H.R. 1982 and H.R. 8282 from the 116th Congress. Those bills, also introduced by Representative Morelle, were for the National Women’s Hall of Fame and called out the type of coins to be produced. Further, H.R. 8242 called for a five-ounce silver coin to be produced in additional to the other three coins.
The National Women’s Hall of Fame is an American institution created in 1969 by a group of men and women[1] in Seneca Falls, New York. Seneca was the location of the 1848 women’s rights convention which kickstarted the women’s suffrage movement in America.[2]
The National Women’s Hall of Fame inducts distinguished American women through a rigorous national honors selection process involving representatives of the nation’s important organizations and areas of expertise.[3] Nominees are selected on the basis of the changes they created that affect the social, economic or cultural aspects of society; the significant national or global impact and results of change due to their achievement; and the enduring value of their achievements or changes.[4] Induction ceremonies are held every odd- numbered year in the fall, with the names of the women to be honored announced earlier in the spring, usually during March, Women’s History Month.[5][6]
National Women’s Hall of Fame Information (Courtesy of Wikipedia)
The text for both of these bills was unavailable at the time of this posting but you can use the bill number links above to follow them through Congress. USCoinNews will also provide updates as they become available.