2009-D District of Columbia | DC & US Territories

The District of Columbia Quarter was released on January 26, 2009. This was the first release of the 2009 DC & US Territories Quarter Program, which followed the popular 50 State Quarters Program with six additional designs.

The reverse design features a depiction of famous jazz musician Duke Ellington, who was born and raised in Washington DC. The inscriptions include "District of Columbia", "E Pluribus Unum", "2009", "Justice For All" and "Duke Ellington" on the piano. The reverse was designed by Joel Iskowitz and sculpted by Don Everhart.

The design selection process caused some controversy since all of the preliminary designs submitted contained the inscription, "Taxation Without Representation." This motto refers to the fact that residents of the District of Columbia pay federal taxes but do not have full representation in Congress. The US Mint rejected the inscription on the basis that controversial inscriptions may not be included on coins. The inscription "Justice For All" is used in place of the controversial statement.