50 State Quarters - Treasury Opposition and Congressional Enactment

Treasury Opposition and Congressional Enactment

The program's origins lie with the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee (CCCCC), which was appointed by Secretary of Treasury Lloyd Bentsen in December 1993 and chaired by Mint Director Philip N. Diehl. From the first days of the CCCCC, one of its members, David Ganz, urged the committee to endorse the 50 States Quarters program, and in 1995, the CCCCC did so. The committee then sought the support of Representative Michael Castle (R-Delaware), chairman of the House Banking subcommittee with jurisdiction over the nation's coinage. Castle's initial caution was resolved when the Diehl suggested the coins be issued in the order the states entered the Union. (Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution). Castle subsequently held hearings and filed legislation to authorize the program.

Despite the support of the Director of the Mint and the Treasury Secretary-appointed CCCCC, the Treasury Department opposed the 50 States Quarters program, citing concerns about the "Disneyfication" of American coinage. The mint's economic models estimated the program would earn the government between $2.6 billion and $5.1 billion in additional seignorage and $110 million in additional numismatic profits. Diehl and Castle used these profit projections to urge Treasury's support, but Treasury officials found the projections to lack credibility. (At the program's conclusion, the Mint estimated the program had earned $3.0 billion in additional seigniorage and $136.2 million in additional numismatic profits.)

Diehl worked with Castle behind the scenes to move legislation forward despite Treasury's opposition to the program. In an attempt to derail the legislation, the Treasury suggested to Castle that the department conduct a study to determine the feasibility of the program. Such studies are a time-honored device used in Washington to placate proponents of proposals while using the delay to kill them. With Diehl's advice, Castle accepted the Treasury offer, and the agreement was codified in the United States Commemorative Coin Act of 1996. The act also authorized the Secretary to proceed with the 50 States Quarters program without further congressional action if the results of the feasibility study were favorable.

In 1996, the Treasury formed a committee to oversee the feasibility study. No US Mint representatives or outside supporters of the program were appointed. However, several Treasury staff who knew the conclusions Treasury sought were included. The Department engaged the consulting firm Coopers and Lybrand to conduct the study which, to Treasury's dismay, confirmed the Mint's demand, seigniorage and numismatic profit projections for the program. Among other conclusions, the study found that 98 million Americans were likely to save one or more full sets of the quarters. (At the program's conclusion, the Mint estimated that 147 million Americans collected the 50 State Quarters.) Nevertheless, the Treasury Department continued to oppose the program and declined to proceed with it without a congressional mandate to do so.

In 1997, Congress issued that mandate in the form of S. 1228, the "United States Commemorative Coin Program Act", which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton on December 1, 1997.