Do legal tender laws force you to accept payment in federal reserve notes from non-government entities?
Yes
are you sure about that? I thought they just force you to pay taxes in federal reserve notes…not from businesses…
No.
Could you elaborate on that, dear friend?
Edit. You did. Thanks.
I’m not sure about that.
The provided answer to the question is confusing. it sounds like they are evading the question.
Can I refuse to accept your dollars? I don’t care about the distinction they make between acutal notes/coins and other substitutes.
For example, what does this mean?
"Private businesses are free to develop their own policies on whether or not to accept cash unless there is a State law which says otherwise. "
Can I refuse US dollars or not? It sounds like they’re talking just about cash.
Sure you can.
It’s funny, bank notes in England still proclaim “I promise to pay the bearer, on demand, x Pounds”.
x Pounds of what exactly? Silver? Gold? Or thin air?
Yes, that is BS.
From Wikipedia:
"in economics, the term currency can refer either to a particular currency, for example the US dollar, or to the coins and banknotes of a particular currency, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation’s money supply. "
Which definition are they referring to? The former or the latter? The phrase “must accept currency or coins” leads me to believe they mean the latter.
That’s not entirely correct. Legal tender for all debts means I can discharge my obligation to you in dollars regardless of what the contract says. Now, you can refuse to sell to anyone who won’t make payment in gold coin, but once a contract is reached and I offer currency instead, the courts will not enforce your gold-coin-only clause. Thus, bad money drives out good money and the good money gets hoarded while the bad money is used in exchange.
I think you may be correct. I’m not 100% sure.
Notice how the answer from the Treasury is evading the question.
I am skeptical, that is not a debt. Do you have some proof?
My understanding is that this is correct also. Which means that a restaurant for instance can’t deny 100-dollar bills because you pay after you have been served…
What if they have no change?
Time to get the lawyers/FTC involved? [:P]
Thats pretty much what Ron Paul says…
he says they force you to accept federal reserve notes.
And yet the US Treasury contradicts this:
“Private businesses are free to develop their own policies on whether or not to accept cash unless there is a State law which says otherwise. For example, a bus line may prohibit payment of fares in pennies or dollar bills. In addition, movie theaters, convenience stores and gas stations may refuse to accept large denomination currency (usually notes above $20) as a matter of policy.”