Rainey introduced legislation for an Alabama Centennial half-dollar in the House of Representatives on February 28, 1920, with the bill designated as H.R. 12824. It was referred to the Committee on Coinage, Weights and Measures, of which Indiana Congressman Albert Vestal was the chairman. That committee held hearings on the bill on March 26, 1920, as well as on the coinage proposal that would become the Pilgrim Tercentenary half dollar, with the Alabama coin the first order of business. Congressman Rainey, in his bill, had asked for 100,000 quarter dollars, and while addressing the committee stated that the sole criticism of his coinage proposal in the Alabama press was one article suggesting he should have asked for double the amount. The choice of denomination came as a surprise to committee member William A. Ashbrook of Ohio, a coin collector, who asked why Rainey was not asking for half dollars, as other states had. Rainey was amenable to that, and also accepted Ashbrook's discouragement when the Alabamian wanted to double the authorized number of coins. The committee voted to recommend Rainey's bill, with an amendment to provide for half dollars instead of quarters, and then proceeded to consider the Pilgrim proposal. Vestal had two days previously written to Treasury Secretary David F. Houston about the Pilgrim coin, and Houston responded that while his department had not opposed the Maine Centennial (previously approved by the committee) or Alabama coinage bills, the Treasury had concerns that issuing large numbers of different designs would aid fraudsters. Vestal issued a report on behalf of his committee on March 27, 1920, indicating his committee's support for the Alabama bill once amended, and attaching the note from Secretary Houston.