The White House announced today that President Obama signed the National Baseball Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act into law (H.R. 2527). The law calls for the U.S. Mint to commemorate the the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York with a three-coin commemorative program consisting of a $5 gold coin (50,000 maximum mintage), $1 silver coin (400,000 maximum), and a clad half-dollar (750,000 maximum) struck as uncirculated coins or as proofs.
The bill requires an open competition for a common obverse design “emblematic of the game of baseball” with a $5,000 minimum prize for the winning design. The common reverse will “depict a baseball similar to those used by Major League Baseball.”
Surcharges will be $35 per gold coin, $10 per silver coin, and $5 for the clad half-dollar to be paid to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for their continuing operations. If all the coins sell out, the Hall of Fame will receive $9.5 million for ongoing operations.
The bill was sent to the White House on July 25, 2012 and was signed today.
National Baseball Hall of Fame logo courtesy of the National Baseball Hall of Fame.