Banks and retailers run short on pennies as the US Mint stops making them(apnews.com)
apnews.com
Banks and retailers run short on pennies as the US Mint stops making them
https://apnews.com/article/penny-coins-lincoln-shortage-us-mint-trump-089cf657b3fa4d6dc21533cf6bb08cf3
4 comments
Should I save my pennies?
The article is pretty clear that saving pennies causes a problem.
"But the problem with pennies is they are issued, given as change, and rarely recirculated back into the economy. Americans store their pennies in jars or use them for decoration. This requires the Mint to produce significant sums of pennies each year."
It also comes across like the US federal government is incompetent:
"But the abrupt decision to get rid of the penny has come with no guidance from the federal government. ... In some states and cities, it is illegal to round up a transaction to the nearest nickel or dime because doing so would run afoul of laws that are supposed to place cash customers and debit and credit card customers on an equal playing field when it comes to item costs. So, to avoid lawsuits, retailers are rounding down. "
It mentions Canada's removal of the penny as a being more competent. According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_(Canadian_coin)#Aftermat...
"Cash transactions in Canada are now rounded to the nearest multiple of 5 cents.[54] The rounding is not done on each individual item, but on the total amount, with totals being rounded to the nearest multiple of 5, i.e., totals ending in 1 or 2 round down to 0, totals ending in 3, 4, 6, or 7 round to 5, and totals ending in 8 or 9 round up to 10."
which indeed seems more reasonable to me.
A competent government would have passed the Common Cents Act ... or rather the original one with rounding since https://commoncentsact.com/ says the House "remov[ed] all cash rounding provisions from original bill" and it's waiting for the Senate.
Instead we get pro forma meetings while Congress sits on their butts and Johnson prevents Adelita Grijalva from being sworn in.
"But the problem with pennies is they are issued, given as change, and rarely recirculated back into the economy. Americans store their pennies in jars or use them for decoration. This requires the Mint to produce significant sums of pennies each year."
It also comes across like the US federal government is incompetent:
"But the abrupt decision to get rid of the penny has come with no guidance from the federal government. ... In some states and cities, it is illegal to round up a transaction to the nearest nickel or dime because doing so would run afoul of laws that are supposed to place cash customers and debit and credit card customers on an equal playing field when it comes to item costs. So, to avoid lawsuits, retailers are rounding down. "
It mentions Canada's removal of the penny as a being more competent. According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_(Canadian_coin)#Aftermat...
"Cash transactions in Canada are now rounded to the nearest multiple of 5 cents.[54] The rounding is not done on each individual item, but on the total amount, with totals being rounded to the nearest multiple of 5, i.e., totals ending in 1 or 2 round down to 0, totals ending in 3, 4, 6, or 7 round to 5, and totals ending in 8 or 9 round up to 10."
which indeed seems more reasonable to me.
A competent government would have passed the Common Cents Act ... or rather the original one with rounding since https://commoncentsact.com/ says the House "remov[ed] all cash rounding provisions from original bill" and it's waiting for the Senate.
Instead we get pro forma meetings while Congress sits on their butts and Johnson prevents Adelita Grijalva from being sworn in.
You have to think big here and mint your own!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GENIUS_Act
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GENIUS_Act
Does Phasing Out the Penny Make Cents? - https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/econ_focus... - 2025 Q3
The Penny Dilemma - https://www.atlantafed.org/blogs/macroblog/2025/06/23/penny-... - June 23, 2025
US Mint 2024 Annual Report [pdf] - https://www.usmint.gov/content/dam/usmint/reports/2024-annua...