It’s been a brisk couple of weeks for newly introduced or passed coin legislation.

Five US coin bills have seen recent movement, and two have actually been presented to President Bush for his signature.

For a quick summation, here are the legislative measures that have moved in congress between September 9 and October 1:

Boy Scouts of America Silver Dollar Coin, H.R. 5872

United States Army Infantry Silver Dollar Coin, H.R. 3229

Read the rest of this entry »

Congressman Frank Lucas introduced House Resolution 6942 Thursday that would swap today’s Jefferson Nickel with a circulating half-dime of old.

In an article Friday, details were scarce because the Government Printing Office had not yet published the bill’s text. That is no longer the case.

H.R. 6942 is officially entitled the ‘5 cent Restoration Act of 2008.’ Interestingly, it is at the top of the brevity scale when it comes to coin legislation with fewer than a dozen sentences. At the bill’s core are three lines that state its intent:

Read the rest of this entry »

Oklahoma congressman Frank Lucas introduced new coin legislation Thursday that would replace the circulating Jefferson nickel with a smaller and lighter five-cent coin, once known as a half-dime.

The text of the bill, H.R. 6942, has not yet been published by Government Printing Office (GPO), but insights into its intent may be gleaned from an article and Lucas statement by David Owen of The New Yorker in March:

"I think we need to assess stepping back from the nickel, the five-cent piece, and consider readopting the traditional five-cent coin, the old half-dime."

Read the rest of this entry »