WASHINGTON — The United States Mint has chosen four pilot cities to test new efforts to encourage regular use of the $1 Coin. A series of events at popular attractions and retailers, as well as television, radio, newspaper and online communications, seeks to make residents of Austin, Texas; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Portland, Oregon; and Charlotte, North Carolina, aware of the benefits of regularly using the $1 Coin. The campaign begins this month.
“This is the first program of its kind to inspire shoppers, diners and commuters to use $1 Coins in their normal, everyday activities,” said United States Mint Director Ed Moy. “When each of us spends the $1 Coin, we make a difference for our country, because the $1 Coin is durable and using it saves the Nation money. We hope our pilot cities lead the change!”
The $1 Coin lasts for decades and is 100 percent recyclable, so using it can save the country billions of dollars over the years.
The events this month will encourage these cities to appreciate the benefits of the $1 Coin and use it regularly, so the cities set a new trend in money usage that the entire country will follow. The four sites were chosen because they are known as unique, yet all–American cities.
$1 coins have been a part of America’s currency for many decades, but they have not been widely used interchangeably with paper money – until now. The $1 Coin offers people speed and convenience when used at grocery stores, restaurants and movie theaters, or when these coins are dropped into vending machines, parking meters or fare boxes.
The Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005, which was passed by Congress and approved by President George W. Bush, supports the pilot program. The Presidential $1 Coin Program, which began in 2007 with the release of the George Washington Presidential $1 Coin, honors the Nation’s Presidents in the order that they served. Each Presidential $1 Coin features an image of the President on the obverse (heads side) and a common reverse (tails side) featuring the Statue of Liberty. The United States Mint issues four Presidential $1 Coins per year, with coins honoring Presidents James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren in 2008. These coins feature larger, more dramatic artwork, as well as the year of minting or issuance, “E Pluribus Unum,” “In God We Trust” and the mint mark inscribed on each coin’s edge. The United States Mint has minted more than one billion new $1 Coins since 2007.
For more information on the United States Mint or the Presidential $1 Coin Program, please visit http://www.usmint.gov/.