diff --git a/samtranslator/__init__.py b/samtranslator/__init__.py
index 99f7e6d9e..0cd60918f 100644
--- a/samtranslator/__init__.py
+++ b/samtranslator/__init__.py
@@ -1 +1 @@
-__version__ = "1.60.1"
+__version__ = "1.61.0"