 The bill was passed without objection by the House of Representatives on February 20 , 1928 . The bill was received by the Senate the following day and was referred to the Committee on Banking and Currency . On February 27 , South Dakota 's Peter Norbeck reported the bill back to the Senate without amendment , and included in the report a letter from Secretary Mellon to Perkins dated February 13 , in which Mellon expanded on his reasons for not opposing the Hawaii coin legislation . Mellon stated that only a token number of pieces would be issued , and that the celebration , sponsored by the territorial government , was of national significance . The bill was passed by the Senate on March 2 , 1928 without recorded opposition and was enacted on March 7 , 1928 with the signature of President Calvin Coolidge . It provided for the issuance of up to 10 @,@ 000 half dollars in honor of the sesquicentennial , with the commission 's profits from the coin to be used toward establishing a Captain James Cook collection in the territorial archives . 
