§5116. Buying and selling gold and silver

(a)(1) With the approval of the President, the Secretary of the Treasury may-

(A) buy and sell gold in the way, in amounts, at rates, and on conditions the Secretary considers most advantageous to the public interest; and

(B) buy the gold with any direct obligations of the United States Government or United States coins and currency authorized by law, or with amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated.

(2) Amounts received from the purchase of gold are an asset of the general fund of the Treasury. Amounts received from the sale of gold shall be deposited by the Secretary in the general fund of the Treasury and shall be used for the sole purpose of reducing the national debt.

(3) The Secretary shall acquire gold for the coins issued under section 5112(i) of this title by purchase of gold mined from natural deposits in the United States, or in a territory or possession of the United States, within one year after the month in which the ore from which it is derived was mined. The Secretary shall pay not more than the average world price for the gold. In the absence of available supplies of such gold at the average world price, the Secretary may use gold from reserves held by the United States to mint the coins issued under section 5112(i) of this title. The Secretary shall issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out this paragraph.

(b)(1) The Secretary may buy silver mined from natural deposits in the United States, or in a territory or possession of the United States, that is brought to a United States mint or assay office within one year after the month in which the ore from which it is derived was mined. The Secretary may use the coinage metal fund under section 5111(b) of this title to buy silver under this subsection.

(2) The Secretary may sell or use Government silver to mint coins, except silver transferred to stockpiles established under the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98 et seq.). The Secretary shall obtain the silver for the coins authorized under section 5112(e) of this title by purchase from stockpiles established under the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 98 et seq.). The Secretary shall sell silver under conditions the Secretary considers appropriate for at least $1.292929292 a fine troy ounce.

( Pub. L. 97–258, Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 984 ; Pub. L. 99–61, title II, §203, July 9, 1985, 99 Stat. 116 ; Pub. L. 99–185, §2(c), Dec. 17, 1985, 99 Stat. 1178 ; Pub. L. 100–274, §5, Mar. 31, 1988, 102 Stat. 50 .)

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised Section	Source (U.S. Code)	Source (Statutes at Large)
5116(a)	31:733(words after semicolon).	R.S. §3699(words after semicolon); restated Jan. 30, 1934, ch. 6, §9, 48 Stat. 341 .
	31:734.	R.S. §3700; restated Jan. 30, 1934, ch. 6, §8, 48 Stat. 341 .
5116(b)(1)	31:335.	R.S. §3526; restated May 10, 1950, ch. 173, 64 Stat. 157 ; July 9, 1956, ch. 535, §2, 70 Stat. 518 ; July 23, 1965, Pub. L. 89–81, §205, 79 Stat. 256 .
	31:394.	July 23, 1965, Pub. L. 89–81, §104, 79 Stat. 255 .
5116(b)(2)	31:405a–1.	June 4, 1963, Pub. L. 88–36, §2, 77 Stat. 54 ; July 23, 1965, Pub. L. 89–81, §209, 79 Stat. 257 ; restated June 24, 1967, Pub. L. 90–29, §3, 81 Stat. 77 .

In subsection (a)(1), the words "With the approval of the President" are applied to 31:733(words after semicolon) because of 31:822b. The words "at home or abroad" in 31:733(words after semicolon) and 734 are omitted as surplus. The words "terms and" are omitted as included in "conditions". The text of 31:733(proviso) is omitted as superseded by the Bretton Woods Agreement Act (22 U.S.C. 286 et seq.) and sections 6 and 9 of the Act of October 19, 1976 ( Pub. L. 94–564, 90 Stat. 2661 ), repealing 31:449 that provided for parity of the dollar on terms of gold and special drawing rights. The text of 31:734(1st sentence words after semicolon) is omitted as surplus.

In subsection (b)(1), the words "coinage metal fund" are substituted for "bullion fund" in 31:335 as being more precise and because of section 5111 of the revised title. The words "after July 23, 1965" in 31:394 are omitted as executed. The words "to procure bullion for coinage" and 31:335(2d–last sentences) are omitted as obsolete because the Secretary of the Treasury has authority to mint coins containing silver only under section 5112(e) of the revised title and the Secretary holds sufficient silver to mint those coins. See Sen. Rept. No. 91–1084 (1970).

In subsection (b)(2), the word "terms" is omitted as being included in "conditions". The words "for at least" are substituted for "at a price not less than the monetary value of" to eliminate unnecessary words.

References in Text

The Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(2), is act June 7, 1939, ch. 190, as revised generally by Pub. L. 96–41, §2, July 30, 1979, 93 Stat. 319 , which is classified generally to subchapter III (§98 et seq.) of chapter 5 of Title 50, War and National Defense. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 98 of Title 50 and Tables.

Amendments

1988-Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 100–274 amended last sentence generally, substituting "shall be deposited by the Secretary in the general fund of the Treasury and shall be used for the sole purpose of reducing the national debt" for "shall be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury".

1985-Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 99–185 added par. (3).

Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 99–61, §203(1), (2), substituted "The Secretary may buy silver" for "The Secretary shall buy silver", and struck out provision directing that the Secretary pay $1.25 a fine troy ounce for silver.

Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 99–61, §203(3), inserted provision directing that the Secretary obtain the silver for the coins authorized under section 5112(e) of this title by purchase from stockpiles established under the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act.

Effective Date of 1985 Amendments

Amendment by Pub. L. 99–185 effective Oct. 1, 1985, except that no coins may be issued or sold under section 5112(i) of this title before Oct. 1, 1986, see section 3 of Pub. L. 99–185, set out as a note under section 5112 of this title.

Amendment by Pub. L. 99–61 effective Oct. 1, 1985, with exception as to issuance or sale of coins under section 5112(e) of this title, see section 205 of Pub. L. 99–61, set out as a note under section 5112 of this title.

Termination of Coinage Metal Fund

All assets and liabilities of Coinage Metal Fund transferred to United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund and such coinage fund to cease to exist as separate fund as its activities and functions are subsumed under and subject to United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund, see section 5136 of this title.