31 U.S.C. § 5135 — Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee

(a) Establishment. (1) The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee is established to advise the Treasury Secretary about themes and designs for coins. (2) The Committee is subject to the Treasury Secretary’s authority. (b) Membership. (1) Appointment. The Secretary appoints 11 members: (A) seven people appointed by the Secretary, consisting of (i) one person specially qualified through education, training, or experience as a nationally or internationally recognized curator in the United States of a numismatic collection; (ii) one person specially qualified through experience in the medallic arts or sculpture; (iii) one person specially qualified through education, training, or experience in American history; (iv) one person specially qualified through education, training, or experience in numismatics; and (v) three people who can represent the general public’s interests in United States coinage; and (B) four people appointed by the Secretary based on recommendations from citizens specially qualified through education, training, or experience: (i) one recommended by the Speaker of the House; (ii) one recommended by the House minority leader; (iii) one recommended by the Senate majority leader; and (iv) one recommended by the Senate minority leader. (2) Terms. (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), members serve 4-year terms. (B) When the Secretary appoints the first members, the Secretary designates four members appointed under paragraph (1)(A) to serve 4 years, the four members appointed under paragraph (1)(B) to serve 3 years, and three members appointed under paragraph (1)(A) to serve 2 years. (3) No person may be appointed while serving as a Federal officer or employee. (4) An appointed member may continue serving for up to 6 months after the member’s term ends, until a successor is appointed. (5) (A) A vacancy is filled in the same way as the original appointment. (B) Members serve at the Secretary’s discretion and may be removed at any time for good cause. (6) The Secretary appoints the Chairperson from among the members for a 1-year term. (7) Members receive no pay for serving. Each member must be reimbursed from the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for travel, lodging, meals, and incidental expenses connected with attending Committee meetings, in the same amounts and under the same conditions as United States Mint employees on official travel, as the Secretary determines. (8) (A) The Committee meets when called by the Secretary, the chairperson, or a majority of its members, but at least twice each year. (B) Every meeting must be open to the public. (C) Timely notice of every meeting must be published in the Federal Register and given to trade publications and publications of general circulation. (9) Seven members make a quorum. (c) The Committee’s duties are: (1) to advise the Treasury Secretary about themes and design proposals for circulating coinage, bullion coinage, congressional gold medals, and national and other medals that the Secretary produces under section 5111 of title 31; and (2) to advise the Secretary about (A) the events, people, or places that the Committee recommends commemorating through commemorative coins in each of the five calendar years after the year in which the commemorative-coin designation is made; (B) the mintage level for each commemorative coin recommended under subparagraph (A); and (C) proposed commemorative-coin designs. (d) The Secretary pays the Committee’s reasonable and appropriate expenses from the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund. (e) When the Committee requests it, or when needed for the Committee to carry out its responsibilities, the Mint Director must provide the administrative support, technical services, and advice that the Treasury Secretary determines are reasonable and appropriate. (f) In carrying out its duties, the Committee may consult the Commission of Fine Arts. (g) (1) By September 30 each year, the Committee must submit a report to the Secretary, the House Committee on Financial Services, and the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. If circumstances prevent the Committee from meeting the deadline, the Secretary must tell the chairpersons of those two committees why the report is late and when the Committee expects to submit it. (2) The report must describe the Committee’s activities during the preceding year and the reports and recommendations it made to the Treasury Secretary. (h) Subject to subsection (b)(8), chapter 10 of title 5 does not apply to the Committee.