,,ii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #afhh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,november #ac1 #bjac,mr4 ,kirk 7for himself and ,mr4 ,rockefeller7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to award the ,congressional ,gold ,medal to the members of the ,office of ,strategic ,services 7,,oss71 collectively1 in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during ,world ,war ,,ii4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,office of ,strategic ,services ,congressional ,gold ,medal ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,office of ,strategic ,services 7,,oss7 was the first effort by the ,united ,states to implement a system of strategic intelligence during ,world ,war ,,ii and provided the basis for the modern-day intelligence and special operations communities of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,,oss founder ,general ,william ,j4 ,donovan is the only person in the history of the ,united ,states to receive the #d highest military decorations of the ,united ,states1 including the ,medal of ,honor4 ,upon learning of his death in #aiei1 ,president ,eisenhower called ,general ,donovan the last hero4 ,in addition to founding and leading the ,,oss1 ,general ,donovan was also selected by ,president ,roosevelt1 who called ,general ,donovan his secret legs1 as an emissary to ,great ,britain and continental ,europe before the ,united ,states entered ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#c7 ,during ,world ,war ,,ii1 each branch of the ,armed ,forces of the ,united ,states contributed personnel to the ,,oss4 ,united ,states ,coast ,guard personnel were recruited for the ,maritime ,unit and the ,operational ,swimmer ,group4 7#d7 ,the present-day ,united ,states special operations forces trace their lineage to the ,,oss4 ,the ,maritime ,unit of the ,,oss was a precursor to the ,navy ,s,e,a,ls4 ,the ,,oss ,operational ,groups and ,jedburghs were forerunners of the ,united ,states ,army ,special ,forces4 ,the #hjast_/#dibnd ,bombardment ,group 7,carpetbaggers7 were progenitors of the ,united ,states ,air ,force ,special ,operations ,command4 ,the ,marines who served in the ,,oss1 including the actor ,sterling ,hayden and ,colonel ,william ,eddy1 whom ,general ,donovan described as the ,american ,lawrence of ,arabia1 were predecessors of the ,united ,states ,marine ,corps ,forces ,special ,operations ,command4 7#e7 ,the ,,oss organized1 trained1 supplied1 and fought with resistance organizations throughout ,europe and ,asia that played an important role in the victory of the ,united ,states during ,world ,war ,,ii4 ,president ,eisenhower credited the work of the ,,oss with the ,french ,resistance during the liberation of ,france as the equivalent of the ,french ,resistance having an extra division4 7#f7 ,four future ,directors of ,central ,intelligence served as ,,oss officers3 ,william ,casey1 ,william ,colby1 ,allen ,dulles1 and ,richard ,helms4 7#g7 ,women comprised more than #a_/c of ,,oss personnel and played a critical role in the organization4 ,these women included ,virginia ,hall1 the only civilian female to receive a ,distinguished ,service ,cross in ,world ,war ,,ii1 and ,julia ,child4 7#h7 ,the ,,oss recruited ,fritz ,kolbe1 a ,german diplomat who became the most important spy of the ,united ,states against the ,nazis in ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#i7 ,leading scientists and scholars in the ,united ,states served in the ,,oss ,research and ,analysis ,branch1 including ,ralph ,bunche1 the first ,african-,american to receive the ,nobel ,peace ,prize1 ,pulitzer ,prize-winning historian ,arthur ,schlesinger1 ,jr41 ,supreme ,court ,justice ,arthur ,goldberg1 ,sherman ,kent1 ,john ,king ,fairbank1 and ,walt ,rostow4 ,its ranks also included #g future presidents of the ,american ,historical ,association1 #e of the ,american ,economic ,association1 and #b ,nobel laureates4 ,the ,bureau of ,intelligence and ,research of the ,united ,states ,department of ,state traces its creation to the ,,oss ,research and ,analysis ,branch4 7#aj7 ,the ,,oss invented and employed new technology through its ,research and ,development ,branch1 including new weapons and revolutionary communications equipment4 ,dr4 ,christian ,lambertsen invented the first underwater breathing apparatus that was first utilized by the ,,oss and is known today as ,,scuba4 7#aa7 ,,oss ,detachment #aja operated in ,burma and pioneered the art of unconventional warfare4 ,it was the first unit of the ,united ,states to deploy a large guerrilla army deep in enemy territory4 ,,oss ,detachment #aja has been credited with the highest kill_/loss ratio for any infantry-type unit in the military history of the ,united ,states and was awarded a ,presidential ,unit ,citation4 7#ab7 ,the ,x-#b branch of the ,,oss pioneered counterintelligence with the ,british and established the modern counterintelligence community4 ,the network of contacts built by the ,,oss with foreign intelligence services led to enduring ,cold ,war alliances4 7#ac7 ,operation ,torch1 the ,allied invasion of ,french ,north ,africa in ,november #aidb1 was aided by the networks established and information acquired by the ,,oss to guide the landings of the ,allies4 7#ad7 ,,oss ,operation ,halyard resulted in the rescue of more than #ejj downed airmen trapped behind enemy lines in ,yugoslavia1 one of the most daring and successful rescue operations of ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#ae7 ,,oss ,mercy ,missions at the end of ,world ,war ,,ii saved the lives of thousands of ,allied prisoners of war whom it was feared would be murdered by the ,japanese4 7#af7 ,the handful of surviving men and women of the ,,oss1 whom ,general ,donovan called his glorious amateurs1 are among the greatest generation4 ,they have never been collectively recognized for their heroic and pioneering service in ,world ,war ,,ii4 #c4 ,congressional gold medal 7a7 ,presentation authorized ,the ,speaker of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,president pro tempore of the ,senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation1 on behalf of ,congress1 of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration to the members of the ,office of ,strategic ,services 7,,oss71 in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during ,world ,war ,,ii4 7b7 ,design and striking ,for purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection 7a71 the ,secretary of the ,treasury 7referred to in this ,act as the ,secretary7 shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems1 devices1 and inscriptions1 to be determined by the ,secretary4 7c7 ,smithsonian ,institution 7#a7 ,in general ,following the award of the gold medal in commemoration of the members of the ,office of ,strategic ,services under subsection 7a71 the gold medal shall be given to the ,smithsonian ,institution1 where it will be displayed as appropriate and made available for research4 7#b7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that the ,smithsonian ,institution should make the gold medal received under paragraph 7#a7 available for display elsewhere1 particularly at other appropriate locations associated with the ,office of ,strategic ,services4 #d4 ,duplicate medals ,the ,secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section #c under such regulations as the ,secretary may prescribe1 at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof1 including labor1 materials1 dies1 use of machinery1 and overhead expenses1 and the cost of the gold medal4 #e4 ,status of medals 7a7 ,national medals ,the medals struck pursuant to this ,act are national medals for purposes of chapter #ea of title #ca1 ,united ,states ,code4 7b7 ,numismatic items ,for purposes of section #eacd of title #ca1 ,united ,states ,code1 all medals struck under this ,act shall be considered to be numismatic items4