Question about the Presidential dollar coins

I didn't see anything in the legislation stating who they were planning on starting with. Do you suppose they might consider starting with Jon Hanson, the first President of the United States, and the first of the ten Presidents who served before Wshington? (Yes George Washington was the eleventh President of the United States, not the first. Each of the other ten served one year terms as President of the United States between the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the ratification of the Constitution in 1787. )

I'm sure they plan on starting with Washington, but I wish they would consider doing something to remember those first ten Presidents. The bill states that one of the reasons for the coins is because most people don't know all the Presidents or the order they served, but then they will go and skip the first ten that almost no one know about.

 

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Wow. I always thought it was Washington...

 

The lgegislation as I read it will start the coins with Washington. While there were technically 10 provisional "presidents" between the time America declared independence in 1776 and the first president elected since the ratification of the constitution took office in 1789, these typically aren't counted as "presidents" in the modern sense, since the Constitution that defined the powers of the president hadn't yet been ratified. George Washington was the first President of the United States since the office was Constitutionally defined and ratified. Those other 10 people served as provsional presidents, but the office wasn't constitutionally defined yet so in a legal sense didn't actually exist. Those 10 people are basically just histirocal footnotes (such as the person who tecnically was president for a day because the president elect refused to be sworn in on a Sunday.).

But the guy who gave the longest inaugral speech ever, on a cold rainy day, refusing to wear a coat or gloves, gets a coin... caught pneumonia as a result and died 30 days later. The shortest inaugral speech was given by his grandson who learned from his grandfather's experience apprently, lol.

 

Yes it does....

17 ``(3) ISSUANCE OF COINS COMMEMORATING

18 PRESIDENTS.--

19 ``(A) ORDER OF ISSUANCE.--The coins

20 issued under this subsection commemorating
21 Presidents of the United States shall be issued
22 in the order of the period of service of each
23 President, beginning with President George
24 Washington.

 

Last I heard, this bill passed bouth the House and Senate, and only needed Bush to sign it for it to become official. Any word on if he's signed it yet? (Though I think it's inevitable he will... in all of US history no president has ever vetoed a bill regarding commeorative o regualar issues of coins. Besides, he'll get to be on one, lol... the bill only excludes sitting presidents at the time of the coin issue, not at the time the legislation is encacted, if I read it correctly. So the series will end when the president previous to whoever is sitting at the time of the last coin issue. Which will probably be about 12 years after the series starts.)

 

Will the series end then or will, as each ex-President dies, his dollar then be issued?

I don't consider the other ten to just be provisional Presidents. Their official title was President of the United States, and the Continential Congress Assembled. They were deferred to and addressed as Mr President (even by George Washington) and they were also the leaders during the period of the Articles of Confederation which was our "government structure" document before the Constitution. Those Presidents were the leaders of our Federal government just as surely as the Presidents under the Constitution are. (Ok, so they were really more like the Speaker of the House, elected from within the Congress to preside and keep order during the debates. I still think they should be included. )

 

This is for Presidents of the United States. There was no United States until the constitution was ratified and GW was the 1st president of the US.

 

Are these coins to be minted in 90% Silver? 27.73 grams? 38.10 diameter same as the modern commemorative issues? I sure hope so.
Are these coins to be general issue (clad) for general circulation like the Susan B Anthony's of old? I hope not.
If they are not silver...pardon my responce...No way...no how...

 

As I read the legislation, there is an expemption from the rule that living people can't be portrayed on the coins; living former presidents will be portrayed in the series. Just not the sitting one, when it gets that far. As I understand it, once it gets to that point, when every president except the currently sitting one at the time is depicted, the series ends.

 

No medal composition has been proposed yet, but these will be issued for general circulation (they aren't commemoratives in the normal sense of coins that aren't intended to circulate). So not silver. Possibly they will be the same or similar composition as Sacagawea dollars.

 

Although the composition was not legislated it it most likly that they will be the same as the Sachys. The first coins are scheduled for Jan. 2007 and the mint claims it would take at least 18 months to develop and test a new alloy.

The coins are commem's in the same way the state quarters are and intended to circulate, so they won't have any silver in them except most likely a silver proof set same as the state quarters.

Also the bill that passed both the house and senate says........

E) LIMITATION IN SERIES TO DECEASED PRESIDENTS

No coin issued under this sub-section may bear the image of a living former or current President, or of any deceased former President during the 2-year period following the date of the death of that President.

This was changed from the origional house version that included all Presidents living and dead.

 

Only if they died 2 years before the end of the series. The bill says the series ends when all qualifing Presidents have been honored and can only be revived by another act of congress.

What the bill does not deal with....Would the living first lady of an elligable(dead) president be placed an a coin?

 

Must have missed that change... in the original version living former presidents were still included. Which would have been an exemption to the general rule that living people can't be portrayed on coins. Though exemptions to such rules can be made... there is a still a law on the books that all US coinage (excluding commemoratives) of any denomination higher than 10 cents must portay an eagle. That's why Franklin halves have that little eagle on them, lol. To date the only exemptions to this law ever made were the bicentennial issues and the state quarter series.

 

Actually, the current version of the bill (I was just looking this up today at my internship, actually) states that it is the SENSE OF THE CONGRESS that even though living Presidents are not normally struck onto coinage, in keeping with the timeline of the series, those Presidents fortunate enough to still be alive should be honored with a coin bearing their likeness when it is their turn to be honored. (i.e. GHW Bush after Reagan, but before William Clinton.)

For those who don't know, a sense of the Congress carries with it no legislative power, but expresses the opinion of the majority of the members of the Congress to the Secretary of the Treasury that that is what they'd like to see. It is still up to the Secretary of the Treasury as to whether or not to honor living presidents with coins or not.

~AJ

 

Nice going AJ, I can see that you are doing your homework! Good job. :thumb:

 

I'm still wondering if the bill has been signed by Bush? Anyone know?

 

Is this "current" version available online anywhere?

 

I took a look back at the bills and the section AJ quoted was from HR 902 as it was introduced back in April. My previous quoted section was from S 1047 as it passed the senate last month. I believe that HR 902 was changed before it passed in July.

This could be the reason the President has not signed the law yet. The house and senate versions must be worked into 1 bill for the Presidents signature.

 

Yes, Dock.... go to "thomas.loc.gov" and do a bill search for either S1047 or HR902 (Senate bill 1047 and House Resolution 902, respectively).

 

I love researching Congressional.... well, anything! Thanks!