U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week suggested Congress should pass a law to allow President Donald Trump to be placed on a what would be a new $250 bill as a way to commemorate the U.S. Semiquincentennial, July 4.
Bessent said legislation could change current law, which prohibits a living person from being printed on U.S. currency. The law was established in 1886 and says “only the portrait of a deceased individual,” may be placed on currency.
The idea to put Trump’s face on a $250 bill for the nation’s 250th anniversary was proposed by South Carolina Republican Rep. Joe Wilson in February 2025. No action has take place on the proposal.
If the law is changed by the U.S. Congress, it would mark the first time in more than 150 years that a living person would be featured on U.S. money.
This is not the first time Trump’s image has been proposed for U.S. currency.
In October 2025, various designs for $1 coins depicting Trump’s face were introduced by the U.S. Treasury as possible options for the 250th anniversary. Like the $250 bill, the $1 was not officially created due to the law.
A $1 coin showing Trump’s side profile was recommended as the best version by the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.
Here’s what the potential Trump $250 bill and $1 coin look like:
What would the $250 Trump bill look like?
During the press briefing, Bessent held up a Washington Post article showing an image of a $250 bill with Trump’s face, which was a mock-up design obtained by the Washington Post.
Trump portrait proposed for new $250 dollar bill
What would the Trump $1 coin look like?
The Commission of Fine Arts Voted to approve this side-profile of President Donald Trump for a $1 coin in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary.
The Trump administration offered several designs for a $1 coin, but a side profile eventually was the final recommendation.
Has the U.S. ever had a $250 bill?
No. The current largest denomination is $100. Other denominations include $1, $2, $5, $10, $20 and $50.
Previously, the U.S. Treasury offered larger denominations, including $500, $1,000, $10,000 and $100,000. None were printed after 1945, but they were circulated until 1969.
U.S. coins include 1, 5, 20, 25 and 50 cent coins, as well as $1 coins. The U.S. no longer mints 1-cent coins.
Has a living president ever been on circulating U.S. currency before?
According to the American Numismatic Association, which deals with artifacts related to money, Calvin Coolidge appeared on a coin. In 1926, a half-dollar for the Sesquicentennial, or 150th anniversary, featured Coolidge and George Washington.
Contact Sarah Moore @ smoore@lsj.com
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Trump wants face on 250 dollar bill. It’s not first time he’s tried
