New quarter program starts in April

Following up on the wildly successful state quarter program, the U.S. Mint will start producing a second quarter series next month. This time, the quarters will feature America’s natural wonders including national parks, forests, shores, and other national sites.

Following up on the wildly successful state quarter program, the U.S. Mint will start producing a second quarter series next month.  This time, the quarters will feature America’s natural wonders including national parks, forests, shores, and other national sites.

Officials at the Mint say more than 140 million Americans collected coins over the length of the first quarter program, which ran from 1999 until 2008.  Delaware Congressman Mike Castle authored legislation that created both quarter programs.  He says through a process called “seigniorage” the federal government makes money when people collect coins and take them out of circulation.  “The seigniorage as far as the 50 state quarters program was $3 billion.  That’s $3 billion of taxpayer’s money which did not have to be taken from the taxpayers.”  Castle says the national parks program should produce a similar amount of revenue.

Delaware, which was the first quarter to be featured in 1999, will have to wait until 2015 to get its coin gets minted.  The First State, which currently doesn’t have a national park, will feature Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge on its coin.  A plan for the state’s national park was introduced last fall (video here, click chapter 4).  It calls for the park to be based in New Castle with connections to other attractions throughout the state.

The first coin in the national park series will feature Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.  That coin will be released next month.  That will be followed by Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park in June, California’s Yosemite National Park in July, Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park in September, and Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest in November.