U.S. Treasury drops Harriet Tubman $20 bill redesign

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Spectrum News that the Treasury Department is “not at present” moving forward with the plan to place abolitionist Harriet Tubman on the front of the $20 bill. The proposal, announced by the Obama administration in 2016 to replace President Andrew Jackson, had been delayed repeatedly under subsequent administrations—pushed to 2026 by the Trump administration, then to 2030 under President Biden.

Bessent offered no further explanation, and a Treasury spokesperson declined to comment. The decision comes as the administration signals readiness to issue a commemorative $250 bill featuring President Donald Trump’s portrait, which would require an act of Congress because living persons cannot appear on U.S. currency. Lawmakers such as Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and Rep. Joyce Beatty expressed disappointment, accusing the Treasury of favoring a Trump bill over honoring Tubman's legacy.

The cancellation ends a decade‑long effort that would have made Tubman the first African‑American woman on U.S. paper currency and marks a shift in the current administration’s approach to diversity‑related initiatives.