Treasury secretary’s Charlotte visit to look at $10 bill, economy

U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew will be in Charlotte Wednesday to discuss a forthcoming redesign of the $10 bill and how to grow the economy through innovation.

Lew has announced that the new $10 bill, which will be released in 2020, will feature an iconic woman who contributed to the democracy of the United States. He is welcoming public input on the new bill’s design, including how to continue incorporating Alexander Hamilton, the current face of the $10. While in Charlotte, he will participate in a roundtable with business leaders and Mayor Dan Clodfelter to discuss the redesigned bill. The meeting isn’t open to the public.

Several lawmakers and the public, however, have focused on having a prominent woman replace President Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill, rather than redesigning the $10. A letter signed by 58 members of Congress, including U.S. Rep. Alma Adams, a Democrat of the 12th District, asked Lew to replace Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, on the $20 bill with a woman.

“Given Andrew Jackson’s grave mistreatment of Native Americans, his involvement in the slave trade, and ironically, his fierce opposition of the central banking system and paper currency, it is surprising that the Treasury Department decided to retain him on the twenty dollar bill,” wrote Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., a New Jersey Democrat.

Women on 20s, an organization dedicated to putting a woman on the $20 bill, held a contest earlier this year that collected more than 350,000 votes. Harriet Tubman was the top vote-getter, beating Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks and Wilma Mankiller.

The Treasury Department tried to seize that public interest as it prepared for the next generation of currency. The new $10 note will be the first of that generation, which the department says will include design features that honor democracy.

In July 2014, President Barack Obama said he was receptive to the idea of putting women on money.

“Last week, a young girl wrote to ask me why aren’t there any women on our currency, and then she gave me like a long list of possible women to put on our dollar bills and quarters and stuff – which I thought was a pretty good idea,” Obama said during a speech in Kansas City.

Also during his visit to the region, Lew will tour Corning’s plant in Midland, which produces optical fiber. The Treasury Department highlighted Corning’s 160 years of work and experience that helps them meet the global demand for broadband services.

This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 12:43 PM with the headline "Treasury secretary’s Charlotte visit to look at $10 bill, economy."