US Mint News Updates

There are a number of US Mint related news items that I wanted to cover before the weekend. I will do a combined post on the topics which include sold out products, an update to the Braille Education Set offering, Girl Scout coins, and a technical amended for the 2009 Lincoln Cent.

Sold Out Coins

Two products have sold out at the US Mint. The first is the Lincoln Coin and Chronicles Set. Although the set had received orders for the maximum 50,000 sets by the second day of sales, ordering options remained open for anyone wanted to be placed on a waiting list. Orders would be fulfilled from the waiting list only in the event of cancellations. The sets officially moved to "sold out" status yesterday. Many readers have also been indicating that they have received their sets.

Earlier in the week, the Martin Van Buren Direct Ship Dollars were sold out. These dollars were available for for purchase in boxes of $250 at face value with no charge for shipping. Martin Van Buren Dollars were added to the Direct Ship Program in September. Coins are offered through this program to encourage circulation of dollar coins. Other Presidents and the Native American Dollars remain available.

Braille Education Set

The US Mint lifted the ordering limit in place for the Braille Education Set. The sets went on sale October 8, 2009 with an initial ordering limit of one set per household. In the first week the set sold 2,719 units. The second week marked faster pace of sales to bring the total to 5,996 units. The set is limited to a maximum production of 25,000.

Girl Scouts Silver Dollars

H.R. 621: The Girl Scouts USA Centennial Commemorative Coin Act has passed both the House of Representatives and the Senate. In order to become law, the bill needs to be signed by the President, which is expected to take place soon.

The bill calls for up to 350,000 silver dollar commemorative coins to be produced and issued during the calendar year beginning January 1, 2013. The design would be emblematic of the centennial of the Girl Scouts of the United States of America. A Boy Scouts commemorative silver dollar was previously approved for release in 2010.

2009 Lincoln Cents

Besides authorizing a new commemorative coin program for 2013, the H.R. 621 also contained an interesting technical amendment related to the 2009 Lincoln Cents:

(a) Continued Issuance of Certain Commemorative Coins Minted in 2009- Notwithstanding sections 303 and 304 of the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 (31 U.S.C. 5112 note), the Secretary of the Treasury may continue to issue numismatic items that contain 1-cent coins minted in 2009 after December 31, 2009, until not later than June 30, 2010.

The issuance of 2009 Lincoln Cents with a composition matching the original 1909 Lincoln Cent was authorized under Public Law 109-145. The law specifically states the coins shall be issued "in 2009."

This authorization has been used to produce 95% copper versions of the 2009 Lincoln Cents for inclusion in 2009 Proof Sets and 2009 Mint Sets. Most years, the US Mint's annual sets are available into the following year. Without this amendment, it seems that the US Mint would have had to cut off sales at year-end, since the Lincoln Cents contained in the sets were only authorized to be issued in 2009. Someone must have realized this and made sure the technical amendment above made it into the bill.