Let’s hear what you think. If you want, you can add a comment to this post. To make sure your comment is published below, keep it “family friendly” and do not spam. Even if you disagree with me, I would love to know what you think!
Will you buy the John F. Kennedy $1 Coin?
Yes, I collect the Presidential $1 coin series (42%, 20 Votes)
I do not collect Presidential dollars and not interested (27%, 13 Votes)
Yes because I am a fan of JFK (15%, 7 Votes)
Not only will I buy the coin but I will buy a Jackie Kennedy coin, too (8%, 4 Votes)
Some members of congress seem to act without thinking. Aside from not thinking about how much the U.S. Mint is forced to waste in order to make less than pure planchets, there are others who are so entrenched in their ideology that they make proposals that no longer make sense and will hurt the collecting industry in the long run.
Case-in-point, Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) introduced S. 95, a bill “[To] Terminate the $1 presidential coin program.” Like the knee jerking to copy and paste old bills, Vitter dusted off his previous attempt (S. 94 in the 113th Congress and S. 1385 in the 112th Congress) and dropped it in the hopper more in an attempt to make it look like he is doing something when all he is doing is annoying collectors.
By anyone’s measure, the Presidential $1 Coin program has not been a success. While it was fundamentally a great idea, the problem with having it gain wider circulation is that congress did not pass the appropriate laws to discontinue printing and distribution of the one dollar Federal Reserve note. When given a choice, people have chosen to carry the note rather than the coin.
Acting as the only adult in the room, then Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner, ordered that the production of all dollar coins, including the Native American dollar, be reduced to levels to only satisfy the collector market unless the Federal Reserve ordered more coins.
At this point, the Presidential Dollar, First Spouse gold coins, and the First Spouse medals are a collector’s series that is near its end. In 2016, the U.S. Mint is scheduled to issue coins in honor of Presidents Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Ford. By law, because President Jimmy Carter is still living, he is not allowed to appear on a coin. Even though President Ronald Reagan is deceased, the coins have to be in order making the program end with Ford.
With six coins to go in the series and four years after the fury, why is Vitter introducing this bill now? Costs have been contained with the reduction of circulation. In fact, reviewing the annual reports, the Presidential $1 program has increased in sales as more of the better known 20th Century presidents have been featured.
Rather than leave well enough alone, Vitter joins the others in congress of not thinking and dropping a bill into the hopper that he might think has value to a small percentage of a perceived base but fails to look at the bigger picture. This is part of their collective myopia that keeps congress’s approval ratings in the single digits.
If Vitter did this for show, he has wasted the time of his staff for having to prepare the bill for submitting; he wasted the time and resources of the Senate clerk for having to record the bill; and he wasted the resources that will have to go into the various mechanisms for tracking the bill. Anytime a member of congress wastes resources they are wasting money.
As a federal government employee, Vitter, his staff, and the congressional support services are paid for out of your taxpayer dollars while the U.S. Mint is making more profit by maintain this program than it would otherwise. If members of congress would look beyond any ideology they pretend to profess and engage their brains when they do something like this, then maybe they might find their approval ratings at least higher than the current temperature in Washington, D.C.
Reverse of the 2015 US Marshal Service 225th Anniversary Commemorative Coins
One of the problems many of us have with congress is the complete lack of common sense its members show. Even though most of the people have a better understanding of the issues, congress appears to represent the least common denominator of knowledge. Case in point was the three bills introduced in January.
Time and again, we hear that congress wants the government to save money. They want agencies to reduce costs and build efficiencies. How can agencies save money when members of congress introduce legislation that is counter to those goals?
Congress has been told that the U.S. Mint could save money if they standardized gold coins to 24-karat coins and silver to at least .999 fine quality. Aside from making the coins more attractive to more buyers including investors, the U.S. Mint does not have to pay more for someone to “dirty” the metals to create planchets that contain 90-percent of the metals.
Modern manufacturing methods are geared to process mined metals to create purer metals. In order for the gold or silver to be used to make the 90-percent alloy, it has to be dirtied with another metal, such as copper, before creating the planchets. While it makes the metals cheaper, the process increases the costs per planchet because of the extra work involved.
Congress exasperates this problem by not listening to the U.S. Mint and doing a virtual copy-and-paste from previous bills that says $5 gold commemoratives be made from 90-percent gold and silver dollars from 90-percent silver.
Rather than listening to the U.S. Mint, Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY), or a non-responsive staffer in his office, did a copy-and-paste of previous commemorative bills to introduce the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act (H.R. 358) that calls for a 90-percent gold $5 coin and a 90-percent silver dollar.
Regardless of how one feels about the use of commemorative coins for fundraising, if congress is going to authorize a commemorative coin, why not allow the U.S. Mint to take advantage to more efficient manufacturing and stop making them dirty the metals?
It is possible that if the U.S. Mint could create commemorative coins worthy of being on par with investor grade coins, not only could they save money in the manufacturing process which could lower the costs of the coins, but they could sell more coins. If the U.S. Mint sells more coins they could collect more of the surcharges to benefit their intended causes.
If congress really cared about saving money and increasing efficiency in the government, members like Rep. Maloney will look beyond rhetoric and actually do something, no matter how simple it is.
Up next, why some members of congress should leave well enough alone!
Late last month, the U.S. Mintpublished their price changes for collector coins, lowering prices from last year. The changes largely reflects the lower cost of silver versus last year.
Although the price of silver is up from the beginning of the year ($15.71 on January 2 to $17.22 on February 2), the price is down from the $19.94 on January 2, 2014. Silver climbed as high as $22.05 on February 24, 2014 to as low as $15.28 on November 6, 2014. Silver prices have been on a steady climb this year with a recent peak of $18.23 on January 23, 2015.
I attach no meaning to these number except that it has allowed the U.S. Mint to lower the price of silver coins.
The changes that were announced are as follows:
Product
2015 Retail price
American Eagle One Ounce Silver Proof Coin
$ 48.95
American Eagle One Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin
39.95
Congratulations Set
50.95
United States Mint Proof Set®
32.95
United States Mint Uncirculated Set®
28.95
America the Beautiful Quarters Circulating Coin Set™
7.95
Annual Uncirculated Dollar Coin Set
46.95
America the Beautiful Five- Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin™ (5 issues)
149.95
This year, the U.S. Mint has started selling the 2015-W American Silver Eagle Proof collectors coin earlier than in previous years. In fact, I have already received my coin.
In short, both money production bureaus will be able to withdraw the money from their respective funds to fully support their operations.
Department of the Treasury requested that the BEP be allowed to withdraw $863 million for operations. The BEP have a total outlay of $918 million but will leverage $50 million from their current operating funds to make up the difference. Using projections from the previous years, the BEP anticipates an order for 8.3 billion notes or a 15-percent increase. Of the area that the BEP will be concentrating on includes additional research into anti-counterfeiting methods, make currency more accessible to the visually impaired, and modernizing the production process in Washington, D.C.
The budget does mention that the BEP was given legal authority to print currency for foreign countries with the approval of the State Department in 2005. However, the BEP has yet to be contracted by any country for this service. Many countries appear more interested in using the polymer substrate produced by the Reserve Bank of Australia than continuing to use cotton-fiber paper, which is favored in the United States.
Funding for the U.S. Mint is different in that while the Federal Reserve pays a fixed fee per currency note to the BEP, they pay face value for the coins they purchase from the U.S. Mint. Even though it costs more than face value to produce the one-cent and five-cent coins, the deficit is more than made up on the quarter dollar, the workhorse of the U.S. coin economy.
To fund its $3.59 billion operation, the U.S. Mint will be allowed to withdraw up to $20 million from their Public Enterprise Fund. That appropriation is only a cushion in case there is a shortfall in the anticipated $4.14 billion revenues. Although the U.S. Mint is now being run by Principal Deputy Director Rhett Jeppson, the organization is unlikely to reverse the production improvements implemented by former Deputy Director Richard Peterson.
One notable statement says, “The 2016 Budget includes a proposal to require the silver coins in United States Mint Silver Proof Sets to contain no less than 90 percent silver. Under current law, the half-dollar, quarter-dollar and dime coins in these sets “shall be made of an alloy of 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper.” Allowing the Mint to have flexibility in this composition will improve efficiency in the production process, lowering the costs for these products.” It appears that the U.S. Mint is asking congress to allow them to use another metal than copper while not changing the silver content. With the cost of copper rising to historic levels, using a less expensive metal on a coin that is not intended for circulation could be a cost savings.
While there will be political fireworks over other aspects of the president’s budget, those of us concerned with the money production by the Department of the Treasury can sit back and worry about other issues.
The 114th Congress was gaveled into session on January 5, 2015 with an air of optimism that both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue would be able to work together. Optimism can last as long as someone does not offend their opponent or there are significant lingering issues. Let the games begin.
We open February with the New England Patriots winning the Super Bowl. Two weeks after the controversy over the deflation of the Patriots’ game balls, they came from behind and won the game on a last minute goal line interception. While many of the commercials were less than memorable, the game lived up to the super name. But for congress, it is only the first minutes of the game. With 23 months to go in the 114th Congress, the insanity is just beginning.
Here are the numismatic-related bills introduced in January:
S. 95: A bill to terminate the $1 presidential coin program
Sponsor: Sen. David Vitter (R-LA)
• Introduced in the Senate on January 7, 2015
• Referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
• To amend title 31, United States Code, to save the American taxpayers money by immediately altering the metallic composition of the one-cent, five-cent, dime, and quarter dollar coins
• Introduced in the House of Representatives on January 22, 2015
• Referred to the House Financial Services Committee
In the days to come I will have a commentary on these bills. All three have flaws that congress keeps ignoring and it is time to take action to let them know how they can get things very wrong even on something as simple as coins. Stay tuned!
And now, the end is near And so I face the final curtain. My friend, I’ll say it clear I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain. . .
As we wind down the end of a very interesting 2014, we also come to the end of the 113th Congress. This congress has been as inactive as any. Sure, there was a lot of press with faces from both sides spewing scary rhetoric about topics these people seem to know little about, but even when it comes to coining money, they have done less than any congress in recent memory.
Other than the passing the budget bill nicknamed “CRomnibus,” the 113th Congress passed only three bills that made it to the President’s desk. President Obama signed all three bills.
Bills Signed Into Law
Public Law 113-10 (formerly H.R. 1071: To specify the size of the precious-metal blanks that will be used in the production of the National Baseball Hall of Fame commemorative coins. This was a technical change in the law that changed how the size of the planchet was determined that were not able to be considered when the law was introduced. This bill was signed into law by the President on May 17, 2013.
Public Law 113-212 formerly H.R. 2366): The World War I American Veterans Centennial Commemorative Coin Act requires the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the centennial of World War I. In 2018, the U.S. Mint will strike not more than 350,000 silver dollar coins “emblematic of the centennial of America’s involvement in World War I.” The $10 per coin surcharge will be paid to the U.S. Foundation for the Commemoration of the World Wars to assist the World War I Centennial Commission in commemorating the centenary of World War I. This bill was signed into law by the President on December 16, 2014.
Public Law 113-288 (formerly H.R. 2754: the Collectible Coin Protection Act. As I previously explained, this law enhances the Hobby Protection Act by allowing law enforcement and other legal actions against distributors and handlers of counterfeit coins and grading service holders. President Obama signed this bill into law on December 19, 2014.
Bills Passed by the House of Representatives
The following bill was passed by the House of Representatives but died in committee in the Senate.
H.R. 2866: Boys Town Centennial Commemorative Coin Act
Bills Introduced in the House of Representatives
These are the bills that were introduced in the House of Representatives but died in the various committees. While it may not be apparent from the titles, all of these bills have some impact on the coinage that would be produced by the U.S. Mint:
H.R. 2760: Panama Canal and Pan-Pacific Exhibition Centennial Celebration Act
H.R. 2932: United States Coast Guard Commemorative Coin Act
H.R. 3146: Savings, Accountability, Value, and Efficiency (SAVE) II Act
H.R. 3305: Currency Optimization, Innovation, and National Savings Act
H.R. 3680: Breast Cancer Awareness Commemorative Coin Act
H.R. 3729: Korean Immigration Commemorative Coin Act
Bills Introduced in the Senate
Coinage bills are considered revenue bills because they earn the federal government money and are used to raise funds that are paid by the government to public and private organizations. Even though the United States Constitution requires revenue bills to begin in the House of Representatives, it is not beneath the Senate to introduce their own legislation. Sometimes, senators introduce concurrent bills—bills that are similar to the one introduced in the House as a mechanism to get one of them passed. These are the bills that were introduced in the Senate that died in committee:
S. 94: To terminate the $1 presidential coin program
S.203: Pro Football Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act
Arriving in time to celebrate Festivus was my order from the U.S. Mint. The sense of timing was interesting since December 23rd was also the seventh day of Chanukah and the last of the eight candles would be lit that night and the day before Christmas Eve. Call it a celebration in a box!
In this order were my 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar products. I first opened the 50th Anniversary Kennedy 2014 Half-Dollar Uncirculated Coin Set. Shrink wrapped, the set that sold for $9.95 was in a nice folder with a card containing two uncirculated coins in capsules embedded in the card. The half-dollars, one from Philadelphia and the other from Denver, are well struck and if I were to have them graded would probably be assigned a high grade.
Some people may balk at spending $5.00 for a half-dollar, but the presentation makes it a nice collectible even for the budget conscious.
Next was the 50th Anniversary Kennedy 2014 Half-Dollar Silver Coin Collection. The set contains four 90-percent silver half-dollars struck in four different finishes: reverse proof, proof, enhanced uncirculated, and uncirculated. This boxed set contains a presentation folder, Certificate of Authenticity from the U.S. Mint, and a booklet documenting how the Kennedy half-dollar came into being following the President’s assassination.
There is a somewhat cheesiness quality about the presentation. First, the outer cardboard sleeve that surrounds the box has a design that is repeated on the box top. The same design is on the outer flap of the folder itself. Esthetically, this type of design is visually fatiguing by the time you are to the point of opening the folder. In the past, the U.S. Mint used their logo or a heraldic eagle. It broke up the visual monotony created by using the same imprint on three different surfaces.
Another problem with the product design is that the encapsulated coins are embedded into a holder that is only one sided. In order to see the reverse of the coins they have to be removed from what holds them into the folder. Unfortunately, the fitting is so tight that it I started to pull apart the part of the folder that attaches the capsules to the folder. Eventually, I used a letter opener to gently pry the capsules out of their slots so that I could see the reverses.
Packaging of the 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Silver Set
The folder with all four coins in the 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Silver Set
A close-up of the silver half-dollars in the 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Silver Set
It was worth the trouble removing the capsules from their holders. All the coins were beautifully struck and looked great including the reverse proof struck in West Point. I love the look of the reverse proof coin. Aside from having Kennedy really standing out on the obverse, there is something regal looking about the heraldic eagle on the reverse.
At first glance there almost appears to be no difference between the proof coin, struck in Philadelphia, and the enhanced uncirculated coin struck in San Francisco. After placing the coins side-by-side it was evident that he proof coin was struck differently than the enhanced uncirculated coin. Proof coins are usually struck with more force and more than once. Looking at both coins together before using a loupe shows that the relief for the proof half-dollar was higher. You can really see the difference by looking at Kennedy’s hair which showed more definition in the proof coin.
Where the enhanced uncirculated coin has an impact is on the reverse. Whereas the elements on a proof coin are frosted the laser process used on the enhanced uncirculated coins allows the U.S. Mint to create the frosting effect on some of the elements. For the reverse of the enhanced uncirculated half-dollar, the U.S. Mint selectively frosted elements of the heraldic eagle giving a “pop” that would not be possible using any other method. By frosting some of the higher relief areas, especially around the eagle’s shield, it provides a visual cue of more depth which makes for a nice refresh of a 50 year-old design.
The obverse of the 2014-W reverse proof in the 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Silver Set
The reverse of the 2014-W reverse proof in the 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Silver Set
The reverse of the 2014-S enhance uncirculated Kennedy silver Half-Dollar
As I write this, the London Fix price of gold is $1,170 per troy ounce. If the PM Fix of gold stays below $1,200, the price of the 50th Anniversary Kennedy 2014 Half-Dollar Gold Proof Coin will drop to $1,165, down from its current $1,202 and will be $75 less than its first issued price of $1,240. Although it is not a good idea to try to time the market, I wonder if all those dealers who caused problems during the coin’s initial release are worried about their profit margins now that the price of gold is going down!
With the midterm elections behind and the anticipation of the changes, congress still had work to do in the lame duck session. Over the last few sessions, congress has been their most productive during lame duck session as polling and focus groups has lead to those running for re-election to fearing the fast moving news cycles. Even the least controversial measures can be side tracked when members think that someone is watching that could misconstrue even the best of intentions.
But good things come to those who wait. Monday afternoon, December 15, 2014, H.R. 2754, the Collectible Coin Protection Act was passed in the Senate. The bill is on the way to the White House for President Obama’s signature, which should be a formality. The Collectible Coin Protection Act was first introduced to in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 7, 2013 to amend and updates the Hobby Protection Act that was passed over 30 years ago. The new law will allow law enforcement to take criminal action and individuals to take civil action against manufacturers, importers, and sellers of counterfeit coins and bullion products. It also allows the enforcement against the unauthorized use of registered trademarks belonging to collectible certification services.
Given the changes in the way we do business today, one of the more significant issues with the Hobby Protection Act is that only the manufacturers of the counterfeits could be prosecuted. In most cases, the manufactures of these counterfeits are hiding behind the Great Wall out of the legal reach of United States law enforcement. The Collectible Coin Protection Act will update the law to add the sellers and distribution of those coins to the targets of enforcement. If we cannot get to the makers of these fakes, then those who distribute that contraband can be prosecuted.
Further expanding the legal net to catch the scofflaws is the new provision to include “any person who provides substantial assistance or support to any manufacturer, importer, or seller” who knowingly engages in any act that violates this law. In other words, this adds the accomplices and those who support any part of the act of production and selling counterfeit United State coins.
If you buy a counterfeit coins, you can now take action against the the counterfeiter, their agents, the seller, and anyone else in the supply chain who was involved in the manufacture and sale of the coin. Even if you unwhittingly buy the counterfeit coin via an online auction and attempt to flip it hoping to recover your money, the buyer can sue you as the seller of contraband. To help fight the counterfeiting of third-party certification service holders, the act extends trademark violation and the ability to sue for remedies.
These new provisions will allow collectors, dealers, and grading services to bring legal actions that are much more effective, with much stronger remedies than previously existed. It will allow those harmed to work with the Justice Department to bring criminal actions where appropriate.
Congress engrossed the bill and sent it to the White House on December 15, 2014. It is currently waiting for President Obama’s signature. It will be a good present to the holiday when he signs this bill into law.
Examples of Chinese Counterfeits
An example of a Morgan Dollar cut in half to match a date with a mintmark to have the coin appear something it is not. Coin was in a counterfeit PCGS slab and caught by one of their graders.
PCGS representatives showed Congressmen counterfeit U.S. coins in counterfeit PCGS holders during their recent meetings in Washington, DC. (Photo courtesy of PCGS.)
As the year winds down and the end of the 50th Anniversary of the Kennedy Half-Dollar draws to a close, I am curious as to how many of my readers bought one of the special coins offered by the U.S. Mint. This is just a quick poll to satisfy my curiosity.
Did (or will) you buy a 50th Anniversary Kennedy Half-Dollar Coin
Yes, I bought the 50th Anniversary Collection (40%, 24 Votes)
Yes, I bought the uncirculated set (28%, 17 Votes)
No, it's not something I collect (18%, 11 Votes)
Yes, I bought the gold proof coin (13%, 8 Votes)
No, I just bought 2014 half-dollars to add to my collection (0%, 0 Votes)
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The 114th Congress was gaveled into session on January 5, 2015 with an air of optimism that both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue would be able to work together. Optimism can last as long as someone does not offend their opponent or there are significant lingering issues. Let the games begin.
As we wind down the end of a very interesting 2014, we also come to the end of the 113th Congress. This congress has been as inactive as any. Sure, there was a lot of press with faces from both sides spewing scary rhetoric about topics these people seem to know little about, but even when it comes to coining money, they have done less than any congress in recent memory.
