the congressional research service estimates that at least $45 million of counterfeit u.s. $100 notes produced by the north korean government are in circulation. a. why do u.s. taxpayers lose because of north korean counterfeiting? north korean counterfeiters undermine the u.s. government's sole authority to print u.s. dollars. accordingly, the u.s. government spends taxpayer money supporting the u.s. secret service as it investigates and stops instances of counterfeiting. counterfeit currency in circulation reduces the extent to which the federal reserve expands the monetary base by purchasing u.s. treasury bills. since the federal reserve pays most of the interest on its treasury bills to the u.s. government, taxpayers lose the interest from the treasury bills that the federal reserve would have otherwise purchased. when individuals and firms receive counterfeit money, they are receiving a worthless piece of paper instead of real money. this paper, having no inherent value, cannot be used as a medium of exchange. b. as of december 2016, the interest rate earned on one-year u.s. treasury bills was 0.87%. at a 0.87% rate of interest, what is the amount of money that u.s. taxpayers are losing per year because of these $45 million in counterfeit notes? enter your answer in dollars. money lost due to counterfeiting: $