Wife of Washington Lobbyist Uses Money as Wrapping Paper

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

9-09-2008 @ 2:31PM

Melanie said...

I commented earlier but I don't think that it went through, so I will do it again :O)

Isn't defacing money illegal? I have always heard that it is a crime if you write, cut, or throw away money. Hmmmmm.

9-09-2008 @ 3:00PM

wendygoerl said...

It depends on your intent. A single cut isn't "defacing" and the money is perfectly spendable once you cut them apart (as long as more than 50% of the bill is there, it's legal tender). Penny presses quote the regulation chapter and verse to show they're legal. The legislation was enacted after a number of banks got the bright idea of stamping ads onto every coin that went past their tellers.

9-09-2008 @ 6:25PM

mikem3621 said...

It is not illegal as long as you do not mess with the serial numbers. You can color all over it, but if you mark over a serial number, it is no longer legal tender and you have committed a crime. The government will not hunt you down for doing this to one bill though, so don't freak out. I heard someone say if the bill has one corner on it, it is still legal for use. So you can cut off three of the sides and still spend it legally.

Add your comments

Your comments:

Remember me

E-Mail me when someone replies to this comment

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.