The debate over the penny ’s deserving ( as in its right to exist , not monetary Charles Frederick Worth , which , of track , is 1/100th of a dollar ) is a recur theme in modern American politics . The firstpiece of legislationintroduced to Congress regarding the matter was the Price Rounding Act of 1989 , which was brought forth " to leave a method for removing one - centime piece from hard currency dealing . " It break down , and Abe Lincoln ’s shining head was spared , but the issue is still raisedtime and time again .
By every measure , mint cent is a waste of money and resource for the U.S. government . In 2011 , the U.S.lost$60.2 million making and circulating the coin and , in 2013 , the U.S. Mint estimated that it cost1.8 centsto farm each cent ( not including distribution costs ) . There arearguments for prevent the coin , but grounds suggests that the penny ’s being is wasted .
Were the government to severalize the one cent coin to get lost , where would all the pennies go ? For solution , it ’s always salutary to look to our sane cousins to the north , Canada . Because the two commonwealth ' neologism dispersion is so like , the results of a phase - out would likely look the same .
In 2012 , Canada ’s Economic Action Plan commence the unconscious process of cease cent production . According to aNew York Timesarticleabout the phase angle - out , Canadians were " advance to bring [ pennies ] to bank for eventual thaw or to donate them to charities — which will presumably bring them in for melting . " Retailerswere toldto start rounding up or down to the close five cent mark set off on February 4 , 2013 . Still , the government allowed pennies to " be used in cash transactions indefinitely with business that opt to accept them . "
The U.S. mints a flock of penny per class — theestimatefor 2014 ’s draw is 6,848,400,000 — and , were production to end today , the government would have minted some 300 billion since 1787 . Of that , only140 to 200 billion penniesare actually in circulation today . That ’s because the coin does n’t have a in high spirits utilization rate — substantial numbers get switch into fountains , lost in couch cushion , dismiss down subway grates , etc . Should the government ordain a phase - out , this will continue to occur to the nation ’s limited supply of subsist pennies ( that have n’t been voluntarily melted down ) until the number dwindle enough for collectors to really take notice . How long will this be ? consider you’re able to bribe a5 lb . pileof Canadian penny for a little over five bucks U.S. , chances are it ’ll take longer than a year .
