Overview
- President Trump directed the Treasury Secretary in February to halt penny production, calling it a wasteful expense.
- The cost of minting a penny has risen to 3.69 cents, more than three times its face value, driving the decision to discontinue the coin.
- The U.S. Mint has placed its final order for penny blanks, with new penny production set to cease once current inventory depletes.
- Businesses will round cash transactions to the nearest nickel as pennies are phased out, a practice already adopted by countries like Canada.
- Two bipartisan bills, including the 'Make Sense Not Cents Act,' have been introduced to formalize the penny's discontinuation.