New gold coins featuring President Donald Trump’s face, issued for the 250th anniversary of United States independence, likely will not be ready until several months afterwards, the U.S. Mint has said in a legal document reviewed by Newsweek.
The delay was revealed in response to a lawsuit that had been filed in a bid to block the creation of the coins altogether, which has ultimately proved unsuccessful.
The U.S. Mint states in the legal document that production on the coins has not yet begun, as the final design has not been approved. After approval has been issued, the production process will still take several months, and their release will not align with the United States’ 250th anniversary of independence on July 4.
Donald Trump’s New Coin Not Unlawful–DOJ
In March, a lawsuit filed by Portland resident James Rickher alleged that having the president’s face on a coin violated 31 U.S.C. § 5114, which bans currency from depicting a U.S. president. That lawsuit moved to block the coins’ production altogether.
Rickher previously told Newsweek, “The legal analysis underpinning the administration’s effort to produce this coin is consistent with what we’ve seen before: intellectually lazy and, at times, disingenuous. I’m under no illusion that this is not the most pressing issue facing the country or the world. But this administration’s disregard for norms, rules, regulations, and laws is so pervasive that even smaller matters like this slip through.”
However, a May 18 legal filing rejects this claim and states that the coin is not unlawful, citing prior instances of a living persons likeness being used on coinage.
This includes an instance 100 years ago, when President Calvin Coolidge was depicted on a coin, issued in celebration of the United States 150th anniversary. It also cites a 1995 coin, issued in honor of the Special Olympics World Games. These coins depicted Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who founded the Special Olympics and was alive at the time that they were issued.
Another coin, issued more than 100 years ago in 1921, showed the then-Governor of Alabama, Thomas Kilby, on the Alabama Centennial Half Dollar.
The Justice Department also states in the legal filing that Congressional approval is not required to mint a coin with a living person’s face on it.
Trump’s 250th Anniversary Coin Faces Delays
In the legal filing, April Stafford, the Director of the Office of Design Management at the United States Mint, discussed the production of the coins and outlined delays in their production.
“The Mint is currently in the design stage of a large 24k gold coin depicting President Trump in commemoration of the United States Semiquincentennial,” Stafford wrote.
She added in the legal filing, “There is no official on-sale date for this gold coin. While the coin will be minted in celebration of the Semiquincentennial on July 4, 2026, this is not the target date for issuance.”
The legal filing then states that the Mint has not begun production, as the final design of the coin has not been approved. Stafford states that her understanding is that the Treasury Department is “still in consultations regarding the design,” and as such, it is “possible that changes may be requested.”
Once the approval of the design is given, if no significant changes are required, it would take six to eight weeks to begin striking coins.
Then, after Mint begins striking the coins, it is estimated that it will take several months for the coins to be produced.
The legal filing does not specify an exact month that the coins would be ready, but considering the delays outlined above, it may perhaps be that the coins are not ready until December, or even the beginning of 2027.
New Details About Trump’s Gold Coin
The legal filing also revealed new details about the coins.
There will only be a total of 47 gold coins made, and each of them will contain an estimated $90,000 worth of gold.
Each of the coins will be machined individually and will have a variable weight of gold of approximately 19.7 oz each.
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