US bills will bear Donald Trump's signature starting this summer, marking the first time a sitting president has signed US currency, the Treasury Department announced on Thursday, according to Reuters.
The redesigned bills, intended to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence, will also for the first time in 165 years forgo the signature of the US treasurer, who reports to the Treasury secretary and oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the US Mint and other Treasury functions.
The first $100 bills with the signatures of Trump and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will be printed in June, with more notes to follow in the coming months. It may take a few weeks for the new notes to circulate through banks.
The Treasury still produces notes bearing the signatures of former President Joe Biden's Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and former Treasurer Lynn Malerba.
Malerba will be the last in an unbroken line of treasurers whose signatures have appeared on US federal currency since 1861, when the US government first issued it.
The signature change is the latest initiative by the Trump administration and its allies to inscribe the president's name on buildings, institutions, government programs, warships and coins. A federal arts committee, whose members were appointed by Trump, last week approved the design of a commemorative gold coin featuring Trump's image.
Bessent said in a statement that the measure is appropriate for the 250th anniversary of the United States, given the country's strong economic growth and financial stability during Trump's second term.
“There is no more powerful way to recognize the historic achievements of our great country and President Donald J. Trump than the American bills that bear his name,” Bessent said.
The effort to introduce a $1 coin with Trump's face has been hampered by laws that prohibit the depiction of living people on US coins.
A law governing the printing of Federal Reserve notes gives the Treasury broad discretion to alter designs to prevent counterfeiting. The law mandates the retention of certain elements, including the words “In God We Trust,” and only allows portraits of deceased persons.
The general designs of the bills will not change, except for Trump's signature to replace the treasurer's, Treasury officials said. A mockup of the $100 bill with Trump's signature was not immediately available.
