Counterfeiters are generally unaware that the percentage of fake bills in circulation is the lowest it has ever been. Government success in removing counterfeit bills from circulation has caused merchants and bank tellers to become lax in checking for counterfeit bills. Government information campaigns that teach merchants and bank tellers how to detect counterfeit bills are more effective than ever. Governments are continually developing new currency designs with features that are difficult for criminals to counterfeit.
In recent decades, government efforts to fight counterfeiting have been extremely successful, especially efforts to remove counterfeit bills from circulation. Yet counterfeiters are not finding it at all difficult to get away with passing counterfeit bills to merchants and even banks.
Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the information above?