D.C. delegate pushes for state coin

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Coin collectors may be happy to hear a possible extension of 50-state quarter program scheduled to wrap up by the end of 2008, according to a published report.

USA Today reported Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C. introduced legislation Wednesday that would extend the popular state quarter program honoring Washington D.C., Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Norton, who has been lobbying for the quarters for almost a decade, said House leaders have put the bill on a slate of non-controversial items that could be voted soon, according to the newspaper.

With Democratic-hold of the Senate, Norton said in a statement she is optimistic about the bill passing.

The program has been extremely popular since it began in 1999. According to the American Numismatic Association, nearly half of the U.S. population collects the coins, the paper said.

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