US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, left, and National Treasurer Lynn Malerba display the new $1 and $5 bills with their signatures at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) in Fort Worth , Texas, on Thursday, December 8, 2022. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
PA
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen marked a milestone in US history when she unveiled a new $5 bill signed for the first time by two women.
Yellen’s signature will appear next to that of National Treasurer Lynn Malerba, the first Native American in that position.
Yellen joked during a visit to a mint in Texas about the bad handwriting of some of her male predecessors, saying: “I’ll admit, I had a good time practicing my signature.”
“Two women on the coin for the first time is truly momentous,” added Malerba, who went with Yellen to the Treasury Department’s Office of Engraving and Printing in Fort Worth, Texas, to have them both sign.
In a ceremonial manner, the two officials signed new sheets of bills in denominations of 1 and 5 dollars and posed for a photo with samples to mark the historic moment. The new banknotes will enter circulation next year.
Yellen earned a reputation as a stoic Federal Reserve chair and keen forecaster, and is now at the helm of sweeping efforts to use economic leverage to help stop Russia’s war in Ukraine, use fiscal policy to protect the planet of climate change and overseeing a massive effort to strengthen the embattled national revenue agency, the IRS.
That puts it at the center of national and global politics as the United States suffers from inflation that reached a 40-year high this summer and sowed fears of a possible recession.
As Yellen watched the new bills printed with her signature, her comments focused on the achievements of the Biden administration rather than her status as the first woman to lead the Treasury Department.
___
Boak and Darlene Superville reported from Washington.
Source: El Nuevo Herald
