Bessent: Fort Knox Gold Intact; Lawmakers Seek Audit

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed in a mid-July interview that the U.S. gold stockpile at Fort Knox and other federal vaults is present and accounted for, while members of Congress and gold advocates are pushing for a full independent audit.

Treasury records from June 2026 list Fort Knox as holding about 147.34 million fine troy ounces of gold, roughly 59% of the government’s reported bullion reserves. Additional holdings are recorded at West Point, the Denver Mint and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Federal law continues to value gold at $42.2222 per fine troy ounce, a statutory price set in 1973. At that book price, the Fort Knox holding has a recorded value near $6.2 billion. Market prices around $4,000 to $4,100 per ounce in mid-July 2026 would place the same gold near $600 billion on the open market. Some lawmakers and analysts have suggested revaluing the reserves; Bessent said revaluation was ‘not what I had in mind.’

Internal annual audits by the Treasury Department’s Office of the Inspector General reconcile records and inspect samples of vault compartments, but those reviews do not weigh and assay every bar. The last widely publicized, large-scale verification of Fort Knox took place in 1974; a smaller visit occurred in 2017. Those gaps have prompted calls for a comprehensive outside inspection.

Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky introduced the Gold Reserve Transparency Act, which would require the Government Accountability Office to complete a full independent audit within nine months and repeat it every five years. The bill has not advanced. Massie linked current coin and metal policy to historical examples of currency debasement in a social post, writing that ‘To fund an overextended empire, Roman emperors debased their coins by diluting the precious metal content.’

Bessent said he is willing to arrange inspections for interested senators but does not plan to travel to Fort Knox himself. He noted that Treasury staff and the U.S. Treasurer have toured the facility and reiterated, ‘I am happy to say all gold is present and accounted for.’

The gold debate has coincided with scrutiny over a 24-karat $1 commemorative coin featuring former President Donald Trump that the Treasury authorized in March 2026 for the nation’s 250th anniversary. The coin was approved under the Treasury secretary’s statutory authority over gold coinage. Production has been stalled since March; Mint filings in May indicated striking would begin weeks after final approvals. Treasury posts in mid-July showed an image of the coin, and current timelines point to a release later in 2026 or into 2027 for a limited run.

Separately, lawmakers have raised concerns about coin production costs. The penny has been composed mostly of zinc since 1982, and production expenses for pennies and nickels now exceed their face value. The MINT Act of 2025 would allow the Treasury secretary to approve lower-cost alloys for the five-cent coin while maintaining its size and weight to preserve compatibility with vending machines and coin-operated systems.

Debate over an independent audit, possible revaluation and coin composition is likely to continue as gold prices remain near record levels. Treasury financial reporting still uses the 1973 statutory price, and no legislation to change the statutory valuation or require a GAO audit has been enacted.