Lions Clubs International Centennial Commemorative Silver Coins Proposed

Lions Clubs International turns 100 in the year 2017. Several dozen Congressman would like to celebrate the milestone with up to 400,000 commemorative silver coins produced by the United States Mint.

Introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on June 3, 2011, by Illinois Congressman Peter Roskam and currently cosponsored by 38 other members, the coin legislation is named the Lions Clubs International Century of Service Commemorative Coin Act and numbered H.R. 2139.

H.R. 2139 calls for silver coins denominated in $1 and produced in collector proof and uncirculated qualities. Each silver dollar would weigh 27.73 grams, have a diameter of 1.500 inches and a composition of 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper. These are the standard coin specifications for modern U.S. Mint silver commemorative coins.

As is typical, the legislation does not include specific design recommendations for the commemorative silver coins. The bill’s language simply states that they must be "emblematic of the centennial of the Lions Clubs International." Designs involving a service based theme with elements of the Lions Clubs International logo would seem logical. The U.S. Secretary of Treasury would make the final design selections after candidates are created by United States Mint artists. H.R. 2139 mandates that the coin designs be reviewed by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and that the Secretary consult the Lions Clubs International Special Centennial Planning Committee and the Commission of Fine Arts before selection.

Lions Clubs International, founded in 1917 by Chicago business leader Melvin Jones, is the largest service club organization in the world. It has over 45,000 clubs with more than 1.35 million members who are located in over 200 countries.

"Whenever a Lions club gets together, problems get smaller. And communities get better. That’s because we help where help is needed – in our own communities and around the world – with unmatched integrity and energy," Lions Clubs International says on the about page of its website.

For the Lions Clubs International Century of Service Commemorative Coin Act to become law, it must pass in the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate and get signed by the President of the United States.

If the legislation passes those hurdles, the United States Mint could begin issuing the silver coins as early as January 2017. Each coin sold would include a $10 surcharge that would be paid to the Secretary of the Lions Clubs International Foundation for the purpose of:

• expanding programs for the blind and visually impaired,
• helping the disabled through investments of "adaptive technologies" and
• investing in youth and those who have been affected by major disaster.

H.R. 2139 currently resides in the the House Committee on Financial Services.