Lansing – Romney Building Press Auditorium

Wednesday, November 28, 2001

The people of every state are proud of the contributions they’ve made to freedom and the American way of life. We in the Great Lakes State certainly are.

This morning, I am happy to announce that Michigan has an unparalleled opportunity to showcase our state to the nation. The time has arrived for Michigan to make our contribution to the "50 State Quarters Program."

The "50 State Quarters Program" was launched by legislation passed by the Congress in 1997. The idea is to promote the diffusion of knowledge about each of the 50 states, especially among young people and their families. Since 1999, 15 states have had their quarters minted at the U.S. Mint – Kentucky’s is the most recent. A new state quarter is being released about every 10 weeks until 2008. The quarters are minted in the same order in which the states either ratified the U.S. Constitution or joined the Union. Since Michigan was the 26^th state to join the Union, our quarter is scheduled to come out in the early months of 2004. It is not too soon to begin thinking about a design that honors our unique history, traditions, and symbols.

Who should submit ideas for our Michigan quarter? I hope this wonderful opportunity energizes people of all ages all across our state – school children, their teachers and parents, history buffs, coin collectors, all who love the Great Lakes State.

To learn about the state’s guidelines for designing and submitting a qualifying designs, we have a Web site for you to visit – Michigan.gov – which explains the whole process. You will even be able to get a template on Michigan.gov that will help you design and draw your quarter, and submit your design directly via the Web. If you prefer, you can submit it by "snail mail."

Dr. Bill Anderson – who heads up our new Department of History, Arts, and Libraries – will be keeping track of the submissions.

Now, here is the timeline. The U.S. Treasury and Mint require that the designs for the Michigan quarter be submitted in 2002 so that our quarter can be released on schedule. Thus the deadline for submitting designs is February 15, 2002 – the day after Valentine’s Day. It’s how you can show your love for Michigan!

The designs will be judged by 25 distinguished, talented men and women whom I’ve appointed to the Michigan Quarter Commission, a number of whom are with us this morning. The chair is former Superintendent Art Ellis – I think this is the 8^th time I’ve called him out of retirement! The co-chair is former Lieutenant Governor Connie Binsfeld, who by profession, you’ll recall, is a teacher. Commission members come from across the state and bring a range of backgrounds to the task, including art, history, and numismatics.

The selection process works like this: the Commission will choose 3 to 5 finalists from among the ideas they receive. Then we will submit these designs to the U.S. Mint, and by the end of next year (2002) a winner will be announced. The winning design will appear on our Michigan quarter in 2004.

Already people are speculating about what the winning design should look like and what symbols best capture the spirit of Michigan. The possibilities are endless. We in the Great Lakes State have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to our state’s contributions to America and the American way of life. If I know our citizens, I can say with confidence that they will submit much more than just two bits’ worth of ideas!

In fact, I’ll wager that Michigan will have the best quarter in America!

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