What This Bill Does
This bill directs Congress to award a gold medal to Muhammad Ali after his death, recognizing his contributions to the nation. The bill also allows the Secretary of the Treasury to create and sell bronze copies of the medal to the public.
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Who It Affects
- Muhammad Ali's wife, Lonnie Ali (who receives the gold medal after presentation)
- The Secretary of the Treasury (who creates the medal and manages sales)
- Members of Congress (who make the official presentation)
- The public (who can purchase bronze duplicate medals)
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Key Provisions
- The Speaker of the House and President pro tempore of the Senate must arrange the presentation of a gold medal to Muhammad Ali in recognition of his contributions to the nation. (Sec. 3(a))
- The Secretary of the Treasury must design and strike (create) the gold medal with appropriate emblems, devices, and inscriptions. (Sec. 3(b))
- After the presentation, the gold medal goes to Muhammad Ali's wife, Lonnie Ali. (Sec. 3(c))
- The Secretary of the Treasury may create and sell bronze duplicate medals at a price that covers the cost of materials, labor, and other production expenses. (Sec. 4)
- The costs for striking the medals come from the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund. (Sec. 6(a))
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What Changes
If this bill becomes law, Congress will officially present a gold medal to Muhammad Ali (posthumously, after his death on June 3, 2016). His wife will receive the medal. Bronze copies will be available for public purchase, with money from those sales going back to the U.S. Mint fund.
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Important Definitions
None defined in bill text.
##
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 709
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to Muhammad Ali, in
recognition of his contributions to the Nation.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 1, 2023
Mr. CARSON (for himself, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. BOWMAN,
Ms. BUSH, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mrs. CHERFILUS-
MCCORMICK, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. COHEN, Mr.
COSTA, Ms. CROCKETT, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr.
EVANS, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr.
GRIJALVA, Ms. JACOBS, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. NORTON, Mr.
KEATING, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. LYNCH, Mr.
MCGARVEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. MFUME, Ms. MOORE of
Wisconsin, Mr. MRVAN, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. OMAR, Mr. PAYNE, Ms.
PRESSLEY, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr.
THANEDAR, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. TORRES of New York,
Ms. TLAIB, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, and
Ms. WILSON of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Financial Services
A BILL
To posthumously award a Congressional gold medal to Mu-
hammad Ali, in recognition of his contributions to the
Nation.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
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•HR 709 IH
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
1
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Muhammad Ali Con-
2
gressional Gold Medal Act’’.
3
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
4
Congress finds the following:
5
(1) Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., on Janu-
6
ary 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky, Muhammad
7
Ali was the first child of Cassius, Sr., and Odessa
8
Clay.
9
(2) Muhammad Ali was one of the most cele-
10
brated athletes of the 20th century. He produced
11
some of America’s greatest sports memories, from
12
winning a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics
13
to lighting the Olympic torch at the 1996 Summer
14
Olympics.
15
(3) After an impressive amateur career, during
16
which he recorded 131 wins and only 7 losses and
17
won 2 National AAU light heavyweight titles, Mu-
18
hammad Ali became the first professional boxer in
19
history to capture the heavyweight title 3 separate
20
times.
21
(4) Muhammad Ali defeated every challenger he
22
faced in the ring. But, on April 28, 1967, he was
23
stripped of his boxing title and barred from com-
24
peting for being a conscientious objector to the war
25
in Vietnam on religious and moral grounds. How-
26
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•HR 709 IH
ever, following a unanimous United States Supreme
1
Court decision in 1971, Muhammad Ali’s conscien-
2
tious objector status was confirmed, his boxing li-
3
cense was reinstated, and he was cleared of any
4
wrongdoing.
5
(5) As an African American and a Muslim who
6
lived in an era that continued to question his civil
7
rights, Muhammad Ali battled issues of race and re-
8
ligion, and received recognition as one of the cham-
9
pions of the Civil Rights Movement in the United
10
States.
11
(6) Muhammad Ali was the recipient of many
12
awards for his sporting prowess and his support of
13
racial harmony, including the Dr. Martin Luther
14
King Memorial Award, the Spirit of America Award,
15
the Amnesty International Lifetime Achievement
16
Award, the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, the Es-
17
sence Living Legend Award, the Rainbow Coalition
18
Lifetime Achievement Award, the XNBA Human
19
Spirit Award, the Presidential Citizens Medal, and
20
the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
21
(7) Muhammad Ali was acknowledged by many
22
organizations for his achievements both inside and
23
outside the boxing ring, including being crowned
24
‘‘Sportsman of the Century’’ by Sports Illustrated,
25
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•HR 709 IH
being named ‘‘Athlete of the Century’’ by GQ maga-
1
zine, being named ‘‘Sports Personality of the Cen-
2
tury’’ by the British Broadcasting Corporation,
3
being named ‘‘Kentucky Athlete of the Century’’ by
4
the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame, being named
5
‘‘Kentuckian of the Century’’ by the State of Ken-
6
tucky, being named ‘‘Louisvillian of the Century’’ by
7
the Advertising Club of Louisville, being named
8
‘‘Boxer of the Century’’ by the World Sports Awards
9
of the Century, being recognized by the Inter-
10
national Boxing Hall of Fame, and receiving hon-
11
orary doctorate degrees from Muhlenberg College
12
and Western Kentucky University, as well as an
13
honorary doctorate of humanities at Princeton Uni-
14
versity’s 260th graduation ceremony.
15
(8) Muhammad Ali received the prestigious
16
‘‘Otto Hahn Peace Medal in Gold’’ from the United
17
Nations Association of Germany for his work with
18
the United Nations and the Civil Rights Movement
19
in the United States.
20
(9) Muhammad Ali was selected by the Cali-
21
fornia Bicentennial Foundation for the U.S. Con-
22
stitution for personifying the vitality of the Bill of
23
Rights in various high-profile activities.
24
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•HR 709 IH
(10) Despite having been diagnosed with Par-
1
kinson’s Syndrome in the early 1980s, Muhammad
2
Ali dedicated his life to the cause of universal
3
human rights and freedom. His commitment to
4
equal justice and peace touched the lives of hundreds
5
of thousands of people worldwide.
6
(11) President Jimmy Carter asked Muhammad
7
Ali to meet with African leaders in Tanzania, Kenya,
8
Nigeria, Liberia, and Senegal as part of President
9
Carter’s diplomatic efforts on behalf of human rights
10
in the 1980s.
11
(12) In 1990, Muhammad Ali traveled to the
12
Middle East to seek the release of American and
13
British hostages that were being held as human
14
shields in the first Gulf War. As a result of his
15
intervention, 15 United States hostages were freed
16
on December 2nd of that year.
17
(13) In 1998, Muhammad Ali was chosen as
18
the ‘‘U.N. Messenger of Peace’’.
19
(14) Several Presidents of the United States
20
recognized Muhammad Ali, including President
21
George W. Bush who, on November 17, 2002, called
22
him ‘‘a man of peace’’ and stated that ‘‘across the
23
world, billions of people know Muhammad Ali as a
24
brave, compassionate, and charming man, and the
25
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•HR 709 IH
American people are proud to call Muhammad Ali
1
one of our own’’, President Bill Clinton who stated
2
that Muhammad Ali ‘‘captured the world’s imagina-
3
tion and its heart. Outside the ring, Muhammad Ali
4
has dedicated his life to working for children, feed-
5
ing the hungry, supporting his faith, and standing
6
up for racial equality. He always fought for a just
7
and more humane world, breaking down barriers
8
here in America and around the world. There is no
9
telling how many tens of millions of people had their
10
hearts swell with pride and their eyes swell with
11
tears in 1996 when Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic
12
torch, because we know, now and forever, he is the
13
greatest’’, President Jimmy Carter who cited Mu-
14
hammad Ali as ‘‘Mr. International Friendship’’, and
15
President Barack Obama who, as a Senator, had a
16
framed picture of Muhammad Ali hanging in his of-
17
fice, and before announcing his intentions to run for
18
President, Obama visited with Muhammad Ali at the
19
Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky.
20
(15) Muhammad Ali encouraged humanity
21
through his perseverance and the support of thou-
22
sands of people. He helped such organizations as the
23
Chicago-based adoption agency, The Cradle; the
24
Make-A-Wish Foundation; the Special Olympics’ or-
25
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•HR 709 IH
ganization, Best Buddies; and Herbert E. Birch
1
Services, an organization that runs a school for
2
handicapped children and young adults, in addition
3
to a summer camp for children with AIDS.
4
(16) Muhammad Ali and his wife Lonnie were
5
the founding directors of the Muhammad Ali Par-
6
kinson Center in Phoenix, Arizona, and helped raise
7
over $50,000,000 for Parkinson’s research. The
8
Center’s mission is to provide excellence in treat-
9
ment, research, and education for patients and fami-
10
lies affected by Parkinson’s disease and other move-
11
ment disorders, regardless of their ability to pay.
12
(17) Muhammad Ali was an inspiration to
13
countless individuals with Parkinson’s disease, in-
14
cluding members of the Rock Steady Boxing Foun-
15
dation in Indianapolis, Indiana, which was founded
16
to give people with Parkinson’s disease hope by im-
17
proving their quality of life using boxing for fitness.
18
(18) Muhammad Ali was one of the founding
19
members of Athletes for Hope, an organization cre-
20
ated by a few very successful athletes of exemplary
21
character who have a deep commitment to charitable
22
and community causes.
23
(19) Muhammad Ali also established the Mu-
24
hammad Ali Center in his hometown of Louisville,
25
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•HR 709 IH
Kentucky, which promotes respect, hope, and under-
1
standing, and inspires people everywhere to be as
2
great as they can be. A visitor of the Muhammad Ali
3
Center experiences the ‘‘hows’’ of Ali’s life: How he
4
found the courage, the dedication, and the discipline
5
to become a world champion; how he found the con-
6
viction to stand up for what he believed; and how he
7
turned his passion for excellence in the ring to a
8
passion for peace on the world stage.
9
(20) Like Muhammad Ali himself, the Muham-
10
mad Ali Center focuses on what brings individuals
11
together, not what sets them apart, and is a ‘‘global
12
gathering place’’ to which people can come, both on-
13
line and in person, to learn, share, and celebrate our
14
commonalities as human beings and to formulate
15
ways of advancing humanity.
16
(21) Muhammad Ali helped to provide more
17
than 22,000,000 aid packets to assist people in
18
need, and until the last years of his life, he traveled,
19
on average, more than 200 days per year for human-
20
itarian causes.
21
(22) Muhammad Ali, known simply as ‘‘the
22
greatest,’’ transcended the glamour and glory of
23
being a sports champion to become not only one of
24
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•HR 709 IH
the greatest sports figures, but one of the greatest
1
role models of our time.
2
(23) On June 3, 2016, Muhammad Ali died at
3
the age of 74.
4
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
5
(a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of
6
the House of Representatives and the President pro tem-
7
pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements
8
for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold
9
medal of appropriate design, to Muhammad Ali, in rec-
10
ognition of his contributions to the Nation.
11
(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purpose of the
12
presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary
13
of the Treasury (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the
14
‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike a gold medal with suitable em-
15
blems, devices, and inscriptions to be determined by the
16
Secretary.
17
(c) TRANSFER OF MEDAL AFTER PRESENTATION.—
18
Following the presentation of the gold medal in honor of
19
Muhammad Ali under subsection (a), the gold medal shall
20
be given to his wife, Lonnie Ali.
21
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
22
Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre-
23
scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in
24
bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 at
25
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•HR 709 IH
a price sufficient to cover the cost of the bronze medals,
1
including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and
2
overhead expenses.
3
SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.
4
The medals struck under this Act are national medals
5
for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
6
SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF
7
SALE.
8
(a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is
9
authorized to be charged against the United States Mint
10
Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be nec-
11
essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under
12
this Act.
13
(b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the
14
sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section
15
4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public
16
Enterprise Fund.
17
Æ
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