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It is illegal to purposely deface, mutilate, impair, diminish, falsify, scales or lightens any coins minted or “coined” in the United States of America. However, the U.S. government will replace worn out or damaged money if three-fifths of it is still identifiable. Two-fifths will earn the bearer half the face value; less than that gets nothing. Every year, the U.S. Treasury handles over 30,000 claims of destroyed or badly damaged currency. But what happens to money that becomes unrecognizable or “mutilated” through unintentional means?

There are numerous ways that currency can become “mutilated”. The most common causes are fire, water, chemicals, explosives, animal, insect, or rodent damage, and deterioration from burying paper currency. If more than half of the money is identifiable and evidence relating to what happened to the remainder of the money indicates that it was completely destroyed, it is possible for money to be replaced however, special steps must be taken to ensure the authenticity of the currency and the condition of the remaining portions of the paper bills. Special experts are employed by the Treasury Department to examine mutilated currency. These individuals carefully investigate all mutilated money received and are responsible for okaying the writing of a Treasury check for the value of the currency as they determine to be redeemable.

It is important to note that paper money can become badly soiled, defaced, disintegrated, worn, and torn through the ordinary exchange of hands. If more than half of the original note is left and special examination of the note is not required, the money is not considered mutilated. These funds can be taken directly to a bank and exchanged for a replacement. The money is then sent to the Federal Reserve Bank to be exchanged for new bills. The serial numbers of the worn-out money are recorded and then the bills are destroyed. Damaged coins are returned to the Treasury for re-minting, meaning they melt them down to make new coins.  Mutilated currency however needs to be mailed or delivered to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington, D.C., with a letter indicating the estimated value of the currency and an explanation of how the currency became mutilated. Special care should be taken to ensure that the bills are left in the same condition they were in when found.

While it is comforting to know that there are measures in place to protect currency from losing it’s value through unintentional mutilation or defacement, one should take every precaution possible to protect our currency. After all, as taxpayers, we do pay for the minting and printing of all currency and coinage in the United States. Try to keep money safe by avoiding letting your wallet run through the washing machine, or leaving money lying around where it can be damaged. Also, please don’t write on bills ad this may cause them not to work in vending machines or not to be accepted meaning they will need to be replaced sooner than ordinary.

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The United States Mint has made several attempts to introduce a coin which would replace the dollar bill. Each time, the end result has been mass production of coins which end up stored in vaults due to lack of demand. Many other countries, including Australia and our neighbor Canada, have replaced their “dollar bill” with a coin version. So why do Americans prefer the bill over the coin so much?

The U.S. Mint pumps out 3.4 billion fresh single dollar bills each year. The truth is, dollar bills wear out in about 18 months while the coins last approximately 30 years. While each coin is more expensive to produce than a bill, the difference in time spent in circulation would mean the overall cost of having a dollar coin instead of a bill over time would be much lower. With this huge of a difference, wouldn’t it be more economical as a nation to utilize the coins? In 2002, the Government Accountability Office stated that our nation could save $500 million a year in production costs if we switched to coins instead of bills. Given the fact that taxpayers could save several hundred million dollars per year just by implementing the dollar coin and phasing out the dollar bill, wouldn’t the appeal to everyone? So just exactly how much is it worth to be able to have a dollar bill instead of a dollar coin?

The many advantages of a dollar coin are not only from a tax savings perspective. Vending machines would be more accessible as individuals are more likely to put coins in a machine instead of dig out a dollar bill. Coins are better for the environment than bills. Less paper is used to print them, the last longer than bills, and less energy is spent producing them. Coins are also easier than bills to count than bills since they don’t stick together and they can be weighed, whereas the bill cannot. Coins are also healthier than bills. Since they aren’t fibrous like the bill, they don’t absorb as many germs or dirt. Coins are washable by simply running under soap and water, but bills are much more difficult to clean without risking damage to the bill.

Current complaints regarding the dollar coin are that it is too close in size to a quarter. People also do not like the added weight in their pockets compared to a dollar bill. Since paper money can be folded and shaped to fit nearly anywhere, it is easier to carry than the coin. Other disadvantages would include the upgrades required to implement the new coins.  Many cash registers and the aforementioned vending mentions would all require equipment upgrades in order to be able to accept the new dollar coin. Counterfeiting is much easier to regulate with bills than coins since new technology allows for special inks, watermarks, and paper. Coins are much easier to counterfeit, therefore, perhaps a savings in created in the form of economic stability.

All in all, there are both advantages and disadvantages to each form of money. However, given our nation’s current financial struggles, the American people may begin to push for every dollar savings they can which could result in a look at the bottom line. In addition, as the “Green Initiative” spreads, the idea of the coin may go further from an environmental perspective. Yet, the fact remains, many attempts have been made to implement a dollar coin into circulation without success. Americans are just hesitant to adopt this new standard and it could remain a difficult sell. Only time will tell what the future of our money looks like. 

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Dollar coins have had as colorful of a history as any paper currency here in the United States. It has, throughout time and again, been minted in various metal elements, which includes gold, silver, copper-nickel, and manganese-brass.

The first dollar coin minted back in 1974 was made out of silver. The minting of this silver dollar continued steadily until 1935, although it is said that its production was temporarily ceased between 1803 and 1836. Seven different designs were listed to have graced the dollar coin throughout this period and these are the Flowing Hair from 1794 to 1795, the Draped Bust from 1795 to 1803, the Gobrecht Dollar from 1836 to 1839, the Seated Liberty from 1840 to 1873, the Trade Dollar from 1873 to 1878, the Morgan Dollar from 1878 to 1921, and the Peace Dollar from 1921 to 1935.

Gold dollar coins, that was made out of 90 percent pure gold, were produced from 1849 to 1889. The decision to mint gold dollar is said to be credited to the gold rush period of the 1840’s. Because of its worth, the gold dollar is the smallest coin ever produced in the United States to date. The gold dollar coin spanned three periods of design stages, the first being the Liberty Head from 1849 to 1854, the Small Indian Head from 1854 to 1856, and the Large Indian Head from 1856 to 1889. It is also said that although gold dollar coins were no longer minted after 1889, several issues were struck in 1915 and 1922 to commemorate the Panama Canal and U.S. Grant respectively, and continued to circulate until the abandonment of the gold standard in the 1930’s.

The next phase in the United States coinage was the copper-nickel clad dollar coins, a period which spanned from 1971 to 1999. Designs on this variety of mint includes the Eisenhower Dollar from 1971 to 1978, the Eisenhower Bicentennial from 1975 to 1976, and the Anthony Dollar from 1979 to 1999. The Anthony Dollar or also cynically known as the “Carter quarters”, due to the poor performance of the dollar during President Jimmy Carter’s term, was minted in tribute to Susan B. Anthony, an important American civil rights leader of the 19th century.

In the year 2000, the Sacagawea Dollar series took birth and it still remains one third of all coins produced to date. The only other design of coinage that is of legal tender is the Presidential Dollar Coin Program, which was introduced in 2007.

The program was initiated to commemorate the former Presidents of the United States and it was decided that four new engraved relief portraits of them be minted each year, in sequential order by term served in office. The Statue of Liberty is engraved on its reverse, along with the inscription “$1″ and the words “United States of America”. Presidents that have adorned the coins so far are George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, and Martin Van Buren, the latter being released this coming November.

If this program should continue to depict all of our Presidents, George W. Bush would adorn the dollar coin in 2016. Cant wait!

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