Congressional Gold Medal: How It Works and Who Qualifies

The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest civilian honor Congress can bestow, awarded case-by-case through standalone legislation that requires roughly two-thirds of each chamber to co-sponsor the bill before the president signs it into law. Congress has authorized only a few hundred since the first one in 1776, which is what keeps it rare. Unlike the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which a sitting president can hand out at will, this one demands that elected representatives from both parties and both chambers agree the recipient deserves it.

Who Can Receive One

There are no permanent statutory rules defining who qualifies. Congress acts case-by-case through special legislation, which gives lawmakers wide flexibility.¹ Recipients have included individual athletes and scientists, entire military units, foreign diplomats, and civil rights leaders. Recent medals went to tennis champion Billie Jean King, congresswoman Shirley Chisholm (posthumously), the U.S. Army “Dustoff” helicopter crews of Vietnam, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team.²

Citizenship is not required. As of the most recent Congressional Research Service tally, 31 medals had gone to non-Americans, including Canadian Ambassador Kenneth Taylor for helping rescue U.S. Embassy officials during the Iran hostage crisis, the Dalai Lama, and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.¹

Posthumous Awards

Congress can honor people who have already died, but House rules impose a timing window. Under Rule 28(a)(7) of the House Republican Conference, the Republican leader cannot schedule a gold medal bill for a deceased recipient unless the person has been dead for at least five years but no more than twenty-five.³ The conference’s elected leadership can waive the restriction, and the rule does not bind the Senate.

How Congress Approves a Medal

Every medal starts as a standalone bill introduced in either the House or the Senate. The co-sponsorship bar is what sets this legislation apart. The House Committee on Financial Services requires at least two-thirds of the full membership — about 290 representatives — to co-sponsor before it will consider the bill.⁴ The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs applies a parallel standard of at least 67 co-sponsors.¹ These thresholds exist to keep the award from becoming a partisan gesture. If two-thirds of a chamber won’t put their name on it, the bill stalls.

After the threshold is met, the bill moves through the standard legislative process: committee markup, floor votes in both chambers, and a final version passed in identical form. The president then signs it into law.

Additional House Screening

House Republican Conference rules add substantive criteria before leadership will schedule a vote. The recipient must be a real person under this rule (not an organization), must have accomplished something with lasting impact on American history or culture, and must not have already received a medal for the same achievement. The work must represent either a lifetime of sustained excellence or a single accomplishment so significant that peers in the field have already recognized it with the highest available honors.³ A separate provision discourages Congress from authorizing substantially more medals in any session than the historical average. Groups and institutions can still receive medals, but only with a waiver of these internal rules.

The Medal Itself

Once the president signs the authorizing legislation, production shifts to the United States Mint under its authority to strike national medals.⁵ The typical bill directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike the medal with “suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions,” leaving artistic details to the Mint.

Two advisory bodies weigh in on design. The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, an 11-member panel appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury, advises on the theme and design of all U.S. coins and medals.⁶ The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts recommends on artist selection and design quality.⁷ Mint artists work with the honoree or the estate to develop imagery. Each finished medal is three inches in diameter and contains roughly 15 ounces of gold.¹

The formal presentation typically happens in the Capitol Rotunda. The costs of designing and striking the medal come from the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, a revolving account that finances Mint operations without annual congressional appropriations.⁸ The Mint also produces bronze replicas for public sale in two sizes, priced at $45 for the 1.5-inch version and $160 for the 3-inch.⁹ Revenue from those sales flows back into the fund, so the program is designed to pay for itself.

Tax Consequences for Recipients

This part catches people off guard. Under federal tax law, prizes and awards count as gross income.¹⁰ The IRS recognizes exceptions for Olympic medals, employee achievement awards, and awards transferred directly to charity, but there is no specific exclusion for the Congressional Gold Medal. A medal containing roughly 15 ounces of gold tracks the price of gold, and at recent prices above $4,700 per ounce, a single medal could be worth well over $70,000. That amount would be includable in the recipient’s gross income for the year received.

Recipients who want to avoid that tax hit have one statutory option. If they transfer the medal directly to a governmental unit or qualifying charitable organization (such as a museum), and they were selected without entering a contest or performing future services in exchange, the award’s value can be excluded from income under the charity-transfer exception.¹⁰ Many medals end up on permanent display at the Smithsonian or other national institutions, which may reflect this tax reality as much as any charitable impulse.

How It Differs From the Medal of Freedom and Medal of Honor

Three national honors get confused. They serve different purposes and follow different rules.

The Congressional Gold Medal is a civilian and institutional honor authorized by Congress through legislation. It recognizes distinguished achievements in any field and can go to individuals, groups, or institutions. It carries no pension, stipend, or ongoing federal benefits.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is a civilian honor bestowed at the sole discretion of the president, with no congressional vote required. It recognizes contributions to national security, world peace, culture, or other significant endeavors.
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration, restricted by law to U.S. service members who demonstrate extraordinary valor in combat. It is presented by the president in Congress’s name and comes with tangible federal benefits, including a special monthly pension, space-available military air travel, commissary access, and guaranteed burial at Arlington National Cemetery.¹¹

The Congressional Gold Medal is purely symbolic. No pension, no travel privileges, no ongoing benefits. Its value lies in the rarity of the honor and the near-unanimous legislative support required to authorize it.

How to Propose a Recipient

There is no public application or nomination form. Because the award requires an act of Congress, the process begins with a member of the House or Senate agreeing to introduce a bill. If you believe someone deserves the honor, your path runs through your own congressional delegation. Contact your representative or senator’s office, make the case for the nominee’s contributions, and ask whether the office would sponsor or co-sponsor legislation. Given the 290-cosponsor threshold in the House alone, successful campaigns almost always involve organized advocacy by foundations, veterans’ organizations, or other groups that can generate broad congressional support across party lines.

1
EveryCRSReport.com. Congressional Gold Medals, 1776-2016
2
U.S. House of Representatives. Congressional Gold Medal Recipients
3
GovInfo. Rules of the House Republican Conference
4
EveryCRSReport.com. Commemorative Legislation: Evolution and Procedures
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 5111 – Minting and Issuing Coins, Medals, and Numismatic Items
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 5135 – Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee
7
EveryCRSReport.com. Congressional Gold Medals: Background, Legislative Process, and Issues for Congress
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 5136 – United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund
9
United States Mint. Military – Bronze
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 74 – Prizes and Awards
11
Congressional Medal of Honor Society. Medal of Honor, Congressional Gold Medal and Presidential Medal of Freedom