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I have really been thinking about this. The BEP and Treasury keep
responding to letters about redesigning the $1 and $2 bills, saying
along the lines of "The $1 and $2 bills are the least counterfeited
denominations, and therefore will not be redesigned" but the real
reason (I believe its the real reason, anyway) is that by order of
Congress, the $1 bill is not being redesigned, due to the cost of
vendors reprograming their machines. I don't know what made them
change their minds, because, I read some of the older articles on
Google from the first redesign that stated that a redesigned $1 bill
would be coming out around 1999, so there would be plenty of time for
the vending industry to prepare. I wish the government would have went
through with the $1 bill being redesigned. I also received mail
directly from the BEP stating that the $2 bill was to be redesigned
during the 1996 redesign.

I have a few ideas for the Treasury.

1: Do NOT redesign the $1 bill if it would be so bad on vendors, but
why not add a water mark, a security strip that reads "USA ONE" down
it, some background color tints and some little orange "01s" on the
front around George Washingtons portrait, if these inks for these
features would be like the serial numbers and not mess with vending
machines? This would prevent counterfeiters from bleaching $1 bills
and printing old style pre-1990 $100 bills on the genuine currency
paper, which would evade a counterfeit pen test. Problem solved.

As for the $2 bill, this denomination should get the total "NexGen"
redesign. The enlarged portrait of Thomas Jefferson, the same
watermarks as the new $5 bill, only in 2s and not 5s, a background
color tint, a security thread that reads "USA TWO" down it, and a
large low-vision numeral similar to the new $5 bill. This would not
only solve bleaching $2 bills, but it may also increase the
circulation because, people will see the redesigned $2 bills and think
"Wow! They still print these? So they're not "rare collectibles?" and
that may cause people to spend $2s more, istead of hoarding them. I
kept urging that the Treasury issue a new $2 bill along side the new
$5 bills in order for vendors to reprogram their machines to take the
new $2 bills while reprograming for the new $5s, including the many
vending machines that do not take $2 bills, thus possibly increasing
the circulation of $2 bills even more. Another thing about the $2 bill
being redesigned is, the fact that, in dark lighting, the current $2
bill looks ALOT like the current $1 bill, and if the $2 bill were
redesigned with a big 2 on the back of it, and other features, people
would be less likely to make the mistake of spending a $2 bill as a $1
bill. (At least people would be looking closer at redesigned $2 bill
to make sure they're not redesigned $5s so that they don't get ripped
off $3) From what I understand, there is NO government order stopping
the redesign of the $2 bill, and Jim Benfield always suggested that
the $2 bill should be redesigned BEFORE the $1 bill is eliminated. So
the Treasury should really go for a redesign of the $2.

If they are going to keep the $1 and $2 bills, they should add these
features I suggested, because if they did, "perfect" counterfeiting
would be darn near impossible, if not totally impossible. If people
looked closely at their money, anyway.

By the way, has anyone heard anything about a possible reissue of the
$500 bill by the year 2010? I really think the Treasury should issue
new $200, $500, and possibly $1,000 bills in 2010, 2011, and 2012, due
to inflation, and the fact that, even $1,000 doesn't go very far these
days. And they will NEVER stop the drug war, so why not issue new
larger denominations of U.S. currency for us law abiding citizens to
use? After all, I did hear that the U.S. dollar is curmbling away in
power, and larger denominations would help stop this. This would also
help save money on printing less $100 bills.

Also, lets get rid of the cent, and redesign the half dollar to be
copper in color, have a reeded edge, so as not to confuse it with the
one cent coin while its still in circulation, and to be in between the
size of the quarter and the nickel, so that it fits in vending
machines and maybe the vendors could reprogram their machines to take
the new halves. This would save on minting so many quarters.

One other thing I think should happen eventually if the $2 bill is
eliminated for a coin: ressurect the plans that the Treasury orginally
had, to print $3 bills. I know this idea sounds corny, and it may also
be hard to count by 3s, but if people could get used to it, with a $3
bill, consumers could only get stuck with carrying ONE $1 or $2 coin,
and not one of each. The $3 bill could go in the exact same slot in
the cash regester as the $1 and $2 bill went in (if the $2 bill had
caught on, after the $1 bill's demise) I wouldn't go so far as to
create a $4 bill if the $3 bill goes though, seing as there were never
any plans for that, and the $3 bill shouldn't really be eliminated
since there'd be too many denominations of coins with added $1, $2,
and $3 coins. Even if the $3 didn't catch on, they'd be fun to spend,
just like the $2 bills are, now.

Does anyone here think they might at least get rid of the $1 bill
though? I was hearing rumors about $1 bill elimination plans being
introduced starting next year. Does anyone think this is true? Will
the Government finally grow the courage to eliminate the $1 bill (and
cent)?

If they keep the cent, I suggest that they change the composition of
the cent to copper plated steel, and while they're at it, change the
composition of the nickel to stainless steel, or nickel plated steel,
and change the quarter and dime to stainless steel, and change the
size of the half, and composition to either solid copper, or copper
plated stainless steel, and leave the $1 coin alone.

You are preaching to folks who are not in positions to effect the changes
you suggest. Why not send these ideas to your Congressmen, who *are* in a
position to effect them? Copy in the folks at the Treasury while you're in
the writing mode.

James