WASHINGTON — U.S. House Representative Joe Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina, introduced legislation in 2024 to create a $250 commemorative bill featuring Donald Trump’s face to mark the U.S. semiquincentennial in 2026. The proposal would require an exception to federal law, which prohibits printing U.S. currency with the image of a living person.

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP), a sub-agency of the U.S. Treasury Department responsible for producing U.S. currency, has requested designs for the proposed $250 note. A Treasury Department spokesperson stated, "Should this legislative mandate be signed into law, the BEP is moving proactively to produce a $250 commemorative note which will appropriately recognize the 250th Anniversary of our great nation." The spokesperson added the agency "is conducting appropriate planning and due diligence."

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, "It's all in the hands of Congress," and added that while his department was preparing in case the legislation passes, the Treasury would follow the law. Bessent also said he did not "think there's anything untoward" about having an image of the sitting president on a commemorative bill marking the nation’s 250th anniversary.

However, U.S. Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat from Virginia, criticized the proposal. "As Americans struggle with the rising cost of gas, groceries, housing, and health care, President Trump's priorities for taxpayer dollars are completely detached from the challenges families face every day," Warner said. He added, "If this White House put even half as much energy into working to lower costs as it does into stoking the president's ego, American families wouldn't need that new $250 bill just to fill up their gas tanks."

Federal law specifies authorized U.S. denominations, and $250 is not among them. The highest denomination currently in production is the $100 bill, featuring Benjamin Franklin. The U.S. previously issued $500, $1,000, and $10,000 notes but discontinued them in 1969; those notes remain legal tender but are mostly held by collectors.

Artistic concepts of the proposed bill have not been publicly released. According to BEP officials, note designs are typically made public six to eight months before issuance to support global education efforts, and earlier release "would aid counterfeiters and cause confusion in the marketplace, lowering confidence in U.S. currency." Currency production for a new high-denomination bill typically takes six to eight years, raising questions about whether the note could be ready by July 4, 2026. As of mid-2025, no legislation proposing to place Trump’s image on U.S. currency has gained traction in Congress.