A Republican congressman wants to create a new $250 U.S. dollar bill featuring Donald Trump’s face, but the proposal faces an immediate roadblock.
U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-South Carolina, on Tuesday said that he was drafting legislation to "direct the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to design a $250 bill featuring Donald J. Trump."
The U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing — or BEP, which operates within the U.S. Department of Treasury — designs and prints paper U.S. currency. U.S. Mint handles the coins.
"Most valuable bill for most valuable President!" Wilson wrote on X, sharing a seemingly AI-generated image of a $250 bill with Trump's face.
Despite Wilson’s enthusiasm, U.S. Code prohibits living people from appearing on currency.
"Only the portrait of a deceased individual may appear on United States currency and securities," reads U.S. Code Title 31 —"Money and Finance" — section 5114.
The U.S. Mint follows a similar policy for coins. Efforts to put a president on a coin can begin two years after a president's death.
"No coin issued under this subsection may bear the image of a living former or current President, or of any deceased former President during the 2-year period following the date of the death of that President," reads U.S. Code 31 — "Denominations, specifications, and design of coins" — section 5112.
It would take more than a simple bill in Congress to create a new banknote, as even redesigns of currency involve five different government agencies — the Treasury, the BEP, the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Reserve System and the U.S. Secret Service. Security is the primary purpose for redesigns, according to the BEP.
Who is on U.S. paper currency?
- $1 - George Washington, 1st U.S. president
- $2 - Thomas Jefferson, 3rd U.S. president
- $5 - Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. president
- $10 - Alexander Hamilton, 1st Treasury secretary
- $20 - Andrew Jackson, 7th U.S. president
- $50 - Ulysses Grant, 18th U.S. president
- $100 - Ben Franklin, a Founding Father
Paper currency no longer in print or circulation:
- $500 - William McKinley, 25th U.S. president
- $1,000 - Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th U.S. president
- $5,000 - James Madison, 4th U.S. president
- $10,000 - Salmon Chase, U.S. Treasury secretary under Abraham Lincoln
- $100,000 - Woodrow Wilson, 28th U.S. president
The Harriet Tubman $20 bill is still waiting
In April 2016, President Barack Obama's administration began an effort to place Harriet Tubman, an American icon known for saving slaves through the Underground Railroad, on the $20 bill.
Obama sought to replace former President Andrew Jackson with Tubman. Jackson is infamously known for forcing tens of thousands of Native Americans to relocate from the U.S. South to Oklahoma in what is known as the “Trail of Tears."
The redesign was originally set to be unveiled in 2020 to mark the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote. However, Obama's plan stalled under the Trump administration.
In 2016, then-candidate Donald Trump criticized the plan as “pure political correctness,” and in 2019, then-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin underTrump announced a delay, citing the need to first upgrade security features on other bills.
The Biden administration later revived Obama's initiative.
"The Treasury Department is taking steps to resume efforts to put Harriet Tubman on the front of the new $20 notes," former White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, adding that U.S. currency should "reflect the history and diversity of our country, and Harriet Tubman’s image gracing the new $20 note would certainly reflect that."
The Tubman $20 bill is now expected to enter circulation around 2030. She would be the first Black person to be placed on U.S. currency — not counting commemorative coins.
