United States Mint 50 State Quarters® Design Use Policy
The United States Mint will not object to use of the obverse or reverse design of any 50 State Quarters® Program coin approved by the Secretary of the Treasury, subject to the following conditions:
Other laws may apply to the use of coin designs. The United States Mint strongly encourages members of the public interested in using coin designs to visit the Consumer and Business Awareness section of the United States Mint Web site (accessible from http://www.usmint.gov/consumer/) for more information.
PLEASE NOTE: This policy does not cover use of the phrase "50 State Quarters", which is a registered trademark of the United States Mint, nor does it cover publicity rights. It does not grant any waiver, release, or written permission of the Director under 18 U.S.C. § 709 or 31 U.S.C. § 333. By adopting and publishing this policy, the United States Mint is not waiving or abandoning any rights in designs assigned or licensed to it, and is not authorizing any acquisition or claim of exclusive rights (such as trademark rights) in quarter designs. The United States Mint makes no warranty of any kind and expressly disclaims any and all implied warranties relating to the quarter designs. This policy does not confer any personal right or cause of action, and does not relieve any party from any other duty or obligation.
Questions on this policy should be directed to the United States Mint Office of Licensing at 202-354-7350.
2 31 U.S.C. § 333 prohibits a person from using, "in connection with, or as a part of, any advertisement, solicitation, business activity, or product, whether alone or with other words, letters, symbols, or emblems [of the Treasury Department, its bureaus, including the United States Mint, and its officials, including United States Mint officials] . . . in a manner which could reasonably be interpreted or construed as conveying the false impression that such advertisement, solicitation, business activity, or product is in any manner approved, endorsed, sponsored, or authorized by, or associated with, the Department of the Treasury or any [Treasury Department bureau or official]."
Findings and Purposes of the 50 States Commemorative Coin
Program Act (excerpted from Public Law 105-124)
An Act
To provide for a 10-year circulating commemorative coin program to commemorate
each of the 50 States, and for other purposes. (Dec. 1, 1997 [S. 1228])
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the "50 States Commemorative Coin
Program Act".
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) it is appropriate and timely—
(A) to honor the unique Federal republic of 50 States
that comprise the United States; and
(B) to promote the diffusion of knowledge among the
youth of the United States about the individual States,
their history and geography, and the rich diversity of the
national heritage;
(2) the circulating coinage of the United States has not
been modernized during the 25-year period preceding the date
of enactment of this Act;
(3) a circulating commemorative 25-cent coin program could
produce earnings of $110,000,000 from the sale of silver proof
coins and sets over the 10-year period of issuance, and would
produce indirect earnings of an estimated $2,600,000,000 to
$5,100,000,000 to the United States Treasury, money that will
replace borrowing to fund the national debt to at least that
extent; and
(4) it is appropriate to launch a commemorative circulating
coin program that encourages young people and their families
to collect memorable tokens of all of the States for the face
value of the coins.