Sponsors (246)
The bill delivers symbolic, public recognition of the 761st Tank Battalion and increases public access to the medal while relying on Mint sales to cover costs—providing little in the way of material benefits to veterans but minimizing new taxpayer appropriations.
Black veterans of the 761st Tank Battalion (and their families) receive formal national recognition, correcting historical neglect and raising public awareness of racial discrimination they faced.
The Congressional Gold Medal will be placed in the National Museum of African American History and Culture (with encouragement to loan it to battalion-associated locations), increasing public access for education, display, and research.
Members of the public can purchase affordable bronze replicas, expanding opportunities for collectors and communities to commemorate the battalion without requiring new taxpayer appropriations.
Surviving veterans and their families get symbolic recognition but no new programmatic benefits, services, or direct financial support from this legislation.
There is a small federal expense to mint the Congressional Gold Medal that ultimately is borne by taxpayers.
Buyers of replicas may face higher-than-expected prices because sales must cover full production and overhead and numismatic classification can allow premium pricing, reducing affordability for some supporters.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Awards a Congressional Gold Medal to the 761st Tank Battalion, directs the Mint to strike it, donates it to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and authorizes sale of bronze duplicates.
Official title: To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the 761st Tank Battalion, collectively, in recognition of their crucial role in the success of Allied forces in Europe and for the example they set as the first Black soldiers to go to war as part of an American armored unit.
Introduced February 26, 2025 by Gary James Palmer · Last progress February 26, 2025
Creates and authorizes a Congressional Gold Medal to honor the 761st Tank Battalion (the “Black Panthers”) for its World War II service as the first predominantly Black American armored unit in the European Theater. Directs the U.S. Mint to strike the gold medal, transfer it to the National Museum of African American History and Culture for display and research, permits sale of bronze duplicates to recoup costs, and sets accounting rules for the Mint to cover production costs through its Public Enterprise Fund.