Gold coins bearing the likeness of President Donald Trump, intended to commemorate America’s 250th birthday, will not be ready in time for the July 4, 2026 milestone, according to a U.S. Mint official. In a legal filing obtained by Newsweek, April Stafford, Director of the Office of Design Management, stated that the coin remains in the design stage and there is no official on-sale date.
Stafford wrote that while the coin is being minted in celebration of the Semiquincentennial, July 4 is not the target date for issuance. Once a design is approved, manufacturing could take months. The filing also reveals that only 47 coins will be produced, each containing approximately $90,000 worth of gold.
The disclosure came as part of a lawsuit filed by Portland resident James Rickher, who seeks to halt production on the grounds that U.S. law prohibits depicting a living president on currency. Title 31 of the U.S. Code states that only portraits of deceased individuals may appear on U.S. currency and securities, while the 1866 Thayer Amendment also bars living individuals from such depictions.
However, the U.S. Mint argues the coin is lawful, citing the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, which only bans living people from appearing on the reverse of coins in the commemorative series. The Mint also points to historical precedents, such as the 1926 Sesquicentennial half dollar featuring President Calvin Coolidge alongside George Washington.
The Mint first unveiled plans for the commemorative $1 coins last October. Three designs are listed on the Mint’s website, including headshots and a side profile of Trump, all inscribed with “IN GOD WE TRUST” and “1776 ~ 2026.” Another design, touted by a Treasury Department official, depicts Trump raising his fist after his assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, with the words “Fight Fight Fight” along the edges.
