United States (U.S.) Treasury securities are government debts issued through the Bureau of the Public Debt by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. A government debt is the money owed by a government (whether local, municipal, state or federal) to the holders of the U.S. debt instruments such as Treasury bills, Treasury notes, Treasury bonds, and Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS). The federal government issues these securities as a way of borrowing the money necessary to efficiently operate the country.

Treasury bills. Treasury bills, also known as T-bills, are considered a low-risk investment. They have a maturity date of one year or less from the time of issuance. Unlike other U.S. Treasury securities, they do not pay interest before they mature but, instead, they are sold at a discount price of the par value. This gives them a positive yield at the time of maturity.

Treasury notes. Treasury notes, also known as T-notes, pose a higher risk to investors than T-bills. They have a maturity date of two to ten years from the time of issuance and can be purchased in denominations from $100 to $1,000,000. They pay interest every six months.

Treasury bonds. Treasury bonds, also known as T-bonds or the long bond, have maturity dates of 20 to 30 years. Like T-notes, they pay interest every six months. T-bonds were eliminated in the 1990s and early 2000s but were reintroduced in 2006.

Treasury Inflation Protected Securities. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities, also known as TIPS, are inflation-indexed bonds. The principal amounts of TIPS reflect the average price of goods on the Consumer Price Index. As of 2009, they have maturity dates of 5, 10, and 20-years from the date of issuance. They pay a fixed rate of interest every six months.

A wealth of information about U.S. Treasury securities can be located on the TreasuryDirect Web site at www.treasurydirect.gov.