US constitutional clause limits states to gold and silver tender

Article I, Section 10, Clause 1 of the US Constitution states: "No State shall... make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts." The same clause also denies states the authority to emit bills of credit.

The post argues this wording makes gold and silver the only legitimate means of payment under the US monetary framework, at least for state-level legal tender rules.

The clause is framed as a constraint on states rather than a federal mandate for a gold or silver standard.