WASHINGTON, D.C. — If you have any wishes for the well, now is the time. Utah Sen. Mike Lee (R), in collaboration with Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley (D), has introduced a new billthat would end production of the penny.
“Minting pennies costs the American taxpayer millions every year – nearly four times more than the pennies are worth,” said Lee. “No private business would produce something at a 4x loss. It’s time to stop wasting Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars making overpriced pennies.”
The concept of ditching the penny isn't a new one. Just in February, President Donald Trump called for the stoppage of the production of pennies. The debate goes back decades, though, with William E. Simon, a former Treasury Secretary in 1976, calling for Congress to abandon the coin.
So what's the deal with the penny? That answer is more complicated.
In a 2024 report, the U.S. Mint stated that the cost of a single penny was $.0369. That means that a single penny costs more than 3 cents to make. Under the proposed bill, officials say the U.S. would save over $85 million a year.
But the issue of cost to produce isn't limited to the penny. That same 2024 Mint report found that the cost to produce a nickel is $.1378, almost 3 times its value.
"Can we get rid of the penny?" seems like a simple answer, as many countries around the world have gotten rid of less valuable smaller denominations. In 2012,Canadagot rid of their penny equivalent. Even the U.S. has gotten rid of certain coins in the past. In 1857, Congress discontinued the half-cent over its unpopularity.
“It’s the opposite of ‘common cents’ for taxpayers’ dollars to fund wasteful spending like producing pennies,” said Merkley. “The Make Sense Not Cents Act will save taxpayers millions—and that is something that both Democrats and Republicans support to seriously take on government waste.”
