Treasury to Print Other Countries' Money

[Khephra]

WASHINGTON -- The government's giant printing presses could soon be cranking out something in addition to the old greenback.

The Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing has gotten the go-ahead from Congress to print other countries' currencies.

A provision giving the bureau this authority is contained in a bill overhauling the country's intelligence operations. The bill is awaiting President Bush's signature to become law.

Although the government wouldn't profit from such ventures, bureau director Thomas Ferguson said the experience could help it sharpen its anti-counterfeiting skills.

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-making-money,0,3750921.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

[liberal N proud]

1. What?

Let see, we outsource all our jobs to other countries and they are going to outsource their currency printing to the US?

[Khephra]

3. You can't even call what the other countries are doing as outsourcing

as we're going to be doing the printing without making a profit.

What the heck! It's Christmas! Lets print everyone's money and not make a profit off of the labor! The taxpayers won't mind that they'll be paying for the extra work being done on their dime.

[Art_from_Ark]

4. Not as odd as it sounds

American Banknote Company has been been printing foreign currency for years. And the US Mint has struck coins for foreign countries, like Panama and Saudi Arabia. Even the Franklin Mint has produced coins for other countries. Treasury just wants to get a piece of the foreign currency pie to sharpen anti-counterfeiting techniques. No big deal.

[jmowreader]

7. It's odd that they won't make a profit

Even making a profit of one cent per note would do a great deal to help reduce the deficit.

[Bono71]

10. Alwasy Knee Jerk...agree no big deal

[lapfog_1]

2. How better to control the world's currency supply

Think of the ultimatum that the US gov could make to those who
don't make the Neocons happy.

[Rose Siding]

12. Why would they trust us to do this?

When our own situation becomes more dire, wouldn't we just flood them with a glut of their own money, making it worth less?

[billyoc]

5. Might as well print other countries' currencies,

no money in printing US dollars. :eyes:

[Zynx]

6. Beat me to it.

;-)

[amazona]

8. they already print Panama's money

:-)

Panama does make its own coins for the collectors but they courteously allow the U.S. to take the time, trouble, and expense of printing their bills.

[Igel]

15. Usually the way it's done is a country pays for the

expenses. The Czech republic "outsourced" it's currency production; they didn't have the expertise to produce it themselves. I'm not sure, but I don't think the other country made much, if any, money on it. The Czech's certainly covered the country's expenses, it wasn't charity. And, therefore, it saved that country a bit of money--the Czech's effectively picked up part of the fixed overhead costs.

Of course, the 50 koruna coin had a nasty tendency to fall apart after a few years.

[maddezmom]

9. sure now they get the authority after spending$80 mil on Iraq's currency

In 2003, U.S. taxpayers paid a foreign printing company approximately $80 million to produce the new Iraqi currency," Brian Roseboro, the Treasury Department's undersecretary for domestic finance, told a House committee in September.


Even if the bureau had the authority at the time, the contract was so large that the bureau might only have been able to produce a portion of what was needed, Ferguson said. The bureau, he said, has been trying to get authority from Congress to print other countries' currencies for at least four years.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=542&ncid=693&e=10&u=/ap/20041210/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/making_money

[neweurope]

11. Yes, right, and RFD-chips on every note?

Sure hope they won't print ours.

[jamesinca]

13. So how easy is it to hijack a plane load of Euros?

Just a curious though. The British pound would be another good one to get. Enough evil thoughts, carry on.

[KDLarsen]

14. Weird...

What the hell is that privision doing in a bill overhauling the country's intelligence operations?

[Art_from_Ark]

16. Sometimes they just sneak in unrelated provisions

in popular bills so there won't be any meaningful debate and the lesser provision can slide by on the coattails of the popular bill. It's been like that for decades.

[MGKrebs]

17. ...which might be the case if it were controversial.

But if it's "no big deal", then it could either be it's own bill or part of something more related to the printing of currency.

I'm not saying I know something nefarious is afoot, but on the other hand, just because something COULD be innocent, doesn't mean it is.

If the flags go up, sometimes it's worth asking the question.

[Art_from_Ark]

18. I concede your point

As a collector, I am familiar with coins and notes that the US government or private companies have made for foreign governments, and in fact own quite a few, so this did not seem to be any big deal. Also, slipping in unrelated provisions in major bills has been around a long time. It can be totally innocent, if the sponsor does not want to spend the time to draft his/her own bill which might detract from more pressing debates. But at the same time, I will wholeheartedly agree that "If the flags go up, sometimes it's worth asking the question".