119-hr5309

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5309 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 5309

 To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Constance Baker 
Motley, in recognition of her enduring contributions and service to the 
 United States.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 September 11, 2025

 Ms. DeLauro (for herself, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. Green of Texas, Mr. Amo, 
 Mr. Amodei of Nevada, Ms. Balint, Ms. Barragan, Mrs. Beatty, Mr. 
Bishop, Mr. Boyle of Pennsylvania, Ms. Brown, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Carson, 
 Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Clarke of New 
 York, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Clyburn, Mr. Courtney, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Davis 
of Illinois, Mr. Davis of North Carolina, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
 DeSaulnier, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Ellzey, Ms. Escobar, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. 
Evans of Pennsylvania, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Fleischmann, Mrs. Fletcher, 
 Mr. Frost, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. Garbarino, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Ms. 
 Garcia of Texas, Mr. Golden of Maine, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. 
Gomez, Mr. Gottheimer, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Himes, Ms. Norton, Mr. Horsford, 
 Mr. Ivey, Mr. Joyce of Ohio, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of 
 Illinois, Mr. Lawler, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Mr. Lieu, Ms. Lofgren, 
 Mr. Lynch, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. McBath, Ms. McClellan, Ms. McCollum, Mr. 
 McGovern, Mr. Meeks, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Meng, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, 
Mr. Morelle, Mr. Mrvan, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Neal, Mr. Neguse, Mr. Norcross, 
Mrs. Torres of California, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Mr. Pallone, Ms. Pelosi, 
 Ms. Plaskett, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Quigley, Mrs. Ramirez, Ms. Ross, Mr. 
 Rutherford, Mr. Ryan, Mr. Schneider, Ms. Scholten, Mr. David Scott of 
 Georgia, Ms. Sewell, Mr. Sherman, Ms. Sherrill, Mr. Simpson, Ms. 
 Strickland, Mr. Swalwell, Mr. Takano, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of 
 Mississippi, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. 
Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Torres of New York, Mrs. Trahan, Mr. Veasey, Ms. 
Velazquez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Ms. Williams of 
 Georgia, Ms. Wilson of Florida, and Mr. Valadao) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial 
 Services

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Constance Baker 
Motley, in recognition of her enduring contributions and service to the 
 United States.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Congressional Tribute to Constance 
Baker Motley Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

 Congress finds the following:

    (1) Constance Baker Motley was born in 1921, in New Haven, 
 Connecticut, the daughter of immigrants from the Caribbean 
 island of Nevis.

    (2) In 1943, Constance Baker Motley graduated from New York 
 University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics.

    (3) Upon receiving a law degree from Columbia University in 
 1946, Constance Baker Motley became a staff attorney at the 
 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 
 Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (in this Act referred 
 to as the ``LDF''), and fought tirelessly for 2 decades 
 alongside Thurgood Marshall and other leading civil rights 
 lawyers to dismantle segregation throughout the United States.

    (4) Constance Baker Motley was the only female attorney on 
 the LDF legal team that won the landmark desegregation case, 
 Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483

    (1954) .

    (5) Constance Baker Motley argued 10 major civil rights 
 cases before the Supreme Court, winning all but one, including 
 the case brought on behalf of James Meredith challenging the 
 refusal of the University of Mississippi to admit him.

    (6) Constance Baker Motley's only loss before the United 
 States Supreme Court was in Swain v. Alabama, 380 U.S. 202

    (1965) , a case in which the Supreme Court refused to proscribe 
 race-based peremptory challenges in cases involving African-
 American defendants, and which was later reversed in Batson v. 
 Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79

    (1986) , on grounds that were largely 
 asserted by Constance Baker Motley in the Swain case.

    (7) In 1964, Constance Baker Motley became the first 
 African-American woman elected to the New York State Senate.

    (8) In 1965, Constance Baker Motley became the first 
 African-American woman, and the first woman, to serve as 
 president of the Borough of Manhattan.

    (9) Constance Baker Motley, in her capacity as an elected 
 public official in New York, continued to fight for civil 
 rights, dedicating herself to the revitalization of the inner 
 city and improvement of urban public schools and housing.

    (10) In 1966, Constance Baker Motley was appointed by 
 President Lyndon B. Johnson as a judge on the United States 
 District Court for the Southern District of New York.

    (11) The appointment of Constance Baker Motley made her the 
 first African-American woman, and only the fifth woman, 
 appointed and confirmed for a Federal judgeship.

    (12) In 1982, Constance Baker Motley was elevated to Chief 
 Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern 
 District of New York, the largest Federal trial court in the 
 United States.

    (13) Constance Baker Motley assumed senior status in 1986, 
 and continued serving on the United States District Court for 
 the Southern District of New York with distinction for nearly 2 
 decades.

    (14) Constance Baker Motley passed away on September 28, 
 2005, and is survived by her son, Joel W. Motley III, 3 
 grandchildren, and nieces and nephews in Connecticut and in 
 other States.

    (15) September 14, 2021, was the 100th anniversary of the 
 birth of Constance Baker Motley.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

    (a) Presentation Authorized.--The President pro tempore of the 
Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives are authorized 
to make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous award, on behalf of 
Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of 
Constance Baker Motley, in recognition of her enduring contributions 
and service to the United States.

    (b) Design and Striking.--

    (1) In general.--For the purpose of the award referred to 
 in subsection

    (a) , the Secretary of the Treasury (in this Act 
 referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a gold medal 
 with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be 
 determined by the Secretary.

    (2) Image.--The emblems, devices, and inscriptions 
 determined by the Secretary shall include an image of Constance 
 Baker Motley and an inscription of the name of Constance Baker 
 Motley.
            (c) Presentation.--With respect to the award described under 
subsection

    (a) , the award shall be presented to Constance Baker 
Motley's son, Joel Motley III, and her niece, Constance Royster.
            (d) Disposition of Medal.--Following the award of the gold medal 
under subsection

    (a) , the gold medal shall be given to Joel Motley III.

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 
medal struck under 

section 3, at a price sufficient to cover the cost 
thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and 
overhead expenses.

SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.

    (a) National Medal.--All medals struck under this Act are national 
medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.

    (b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of 
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be 
considered to be numismatic items.

SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

    (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to be 
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund such 
amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck 
under this Act.

    (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate 
bronze medals authorized under 

section 4 shall be deposited into the 
United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
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