What This Bill Does
This bill authorizes Congress to award a gold medal to Constance Baker Motley after her death, recognizing her contributions to the United States. The medal will be given to her son and niece in honor of her civil rights work and service as a judge.
Who It Affects
The Secretary of the Treasury will be responsible for creating and striking the medal. Joel Motley III (Constance Baker Motley's son) and Constance Royster (her niece) will receive the award. The United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund will cover and receive proceeds related to the medal.
Key Provisions
* The President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives are authorized to arrange for the posthumous award of a gold medal to Constance Baker Motley in recognition of her enduring contributions and service to the United States (Sec. 3(a))
* The Secretary of the Treasury shall strike a gold medal with emblems, devices, and inscriptions, including an image of Constance Baker Motley and her name (Sec. 3(b))
* The gold medal shall be presented to Joel Motley III and Constance Royster, with the medal given to Joel Motley III following the award (Sec. 3(c) and (d))
* The Secretary may strike and sell duplicate bronze medals at a price sufficient to cover costs including labor, materials, dies, machinery use, and overhead expenses (Sec. 4)
* Amounts necessary to pay for medal costs shall be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, and proceeds from selling duplicate medals shall be deposited back into that fund (Sec. 6)
What Changes
A posthumous congressional gold medal will be created and awarded to honor Constance Baker Motley's life and work in civil rights and the federal judiciary.
Important Definitions
* LDF: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.
* Numismatic items: Collectible coins and medals (Sec. 5(b))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1077
To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Constance Baker Mot-
ley, in recognition of her enduring contributions and service to the
United States.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 17, 2023
Ms. DELAURO (for herself, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. CLARKE of New
York, and Mr. TORRES of New York) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Financial Services
A BILL
To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Con-
stance Baker Motley, in recognition of her enduring con-
tributions and service to the United States.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Congressional Tribute
4
to Constance Baker Motley Act of 2023’’.
5
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
6
Congress finds the following:
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•HR 1077 IH
(1) Constance Baker Motley was born in 1921,
1
in New Haven, Connecticut, the daughter of immi-
2
grants from the Caribbean island of Nevis.
3
(2) In 1943, Constance Baker Motley grad-
4
uated from New York University with a Bachelor of
5
Arts degree in economics.
6
(3) Upon receiving a law degree from Columbia
7
University in 1946, Constance Baker Motley became
8
a staff attorney at the National Association for the
9
Advancement of Colored People Legal Defense and
10
Educational Fund, Inc. (in this Act referred to as
11
the ‘‘LDF’’), and fought tirelessly for 2 decades
12
alongside Thurgood Marshall and other leading civil
13
rights lawyers to dismantle segregation throughout
14
the United States.
15
(4) Constance Baker Motley was the only fe-
16
male attorney on the LDF legal team that won the
17
landmark desegregation case, Brown v. Board of
18
Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).
19
(5) Constance Baker Motley argued 10 major
20
civil rights cases before the Supreme Court, winning
21
all but one, including the case brought on behalf of
22
James Meredith challenging the refusal of the Uni-
23
versity of Mississippi to admit him.
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•HR 1077 IH
(6) Constance Baker Motley’s only loss before
1
the United States Supreme Court was in Swain v.
2
Alabama, 380 U.S. 202 (1965), a case in which the
3
Supreme Court refused to proscribe race-based pe-
4
remptory challenges in cases involving African-Amer-
5
ican defendants, and which was later reversed in
6
Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), on
7
grounds that were largely asserted by Constance
8
Baker Motley in the Swain case.
9
(7) In 1964, Constance Baker Motley became
10
the first African-American woman elected to the
11
New York State Senate.
12
(8) In 1965, Constance Baker Motley became
13
the first African-American woman, and the first
14
woman, to serve as president of the Borough of
15
Manhattan.
16
(9) Constance Baker Motley, in her capacity as
17
an elected public official in New York, continued to
18
fight for civil rights, dedicating herself to the revital-
19
ization of the inner city and improvement of urban
20
public schools and housing.
21
(10) In 1966, Constance Baker Motley was ap-
22
pointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson as a judge
23
on the United States District Court for the Southern
24
District of New York.
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•HR 1077 IH
(11) The appointment of Constance Baker Mot-
1
ley made her the first African-American woman, and
2
only the fifth woman, appointed and confirmed for
3
a Federal judgeship.
4
(12) In 1982, Constance Baker Motley was ele-
5
vated to Chief Judge of the United States District
6
Court for the Southern District of New York, the
7
largest Federal trial court in the United States.
8
(13) Constance Baker Motley assumed senior
9
status in 1986, and continued serving on the United
10
States District Court for the Southern District of
11
New York with distinction for nearly 2 decades.
12
(14) Constance Baker Motley passed away on
13
September 28, 2005, and is survived by her son,
14
Joel W. Motley III, 3 grandchildren, and nieces and
15
nephews in Connecticut and in other States.
16
(15) September 14, 2021, was the 100th anni-
17
versary of the birth of Constance Baker Motley.
18
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
19
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President
20
pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House
21
of Representatives are authorized to make appropriate ar-
22
rangements for the posthumous award, on behalf of Con-
23
gress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemo-
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•HR 1077 IH
ration of Constance Baker Motley, in recognition of her
1
enduring contributions and service to the United States.
2
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—
3
(1) IN
GENERAL.—For the purpose of the
4
award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of
5
the Treasury (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec-
6
retary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable em-
7
blems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by
8
the Secretary.
9
(2) IMAGE.—The emblems, devices, and inscrip-
10
tions determined by the Secretary shall include an
11
image of Constance Baker Motley and an inscription
12
of the name of Constance Baker Motley.
13
(c) PRESENTATION.—With respect to the award de-
14
scribed under subsection (a), the award shall be presented
15
to Constance Baker Motley’s son, Joel Motley III, and her
16
niece, Constance Royster.
17
(d) DISPOSITION OF MEDAL.—Following the award
18
of the gold medal under subsection (a), the gold medal
19
shall be given to Joel Motley III.
20
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
21
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in
22
bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price
23
sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, mate-
24
rials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.
25
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•HR 1077 IH
SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.
1
(a) NATIONAL MEDAL.—All medals struck under this
2
Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title
3
31, United States Code.
4
(b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of sections
5
5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals
6
struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic
7
items.
8
SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF
9
SALE.
10
(a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is
11
authorized to be charged against the United States Mint
12
Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be nec-
13
essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under
14
this Act.
15
(b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the
16
sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section
17
4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public
18
Enterprise Fund.
19
Æ
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