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Penny

On Sunday, February 9th, President Trump announced that he has asked the US Treasury Department to stop producing pennies. The reason given is they cost more than three times to produce than they are worth. In 2024, the cost of making a penny was nearly 3.7 cents, according to the US Mint’s Annual Report. In 2024, the US Mint reported losing over $85 million on the 3.2 billion pennies it produced that year. So it is understandable the financial argument is that the penny’s value is too small in current times to be valuable. However, others argue with sales tax added to purchases, pennies are needed to be able to make correct change in coins. The current trend is clearly that many people pay for their everyday and online purchases using credit or debit cards, even for very low dollar amount totals. Many people say they no longer bother carrying around cash anymore.

Before 1962, pennies were made of copper. Currently they are made mostly of zinc with copper plating. President Abraham Lincoln has been on the penny since 1909. The penny was the first coin made by the US Mint, according to the US Treasury Department.

Will nickels be next on the chopping block? Apparently, the government is also losing money on the production of nickels, the next larger coin denomination. According to the latest annual report from the US Mint, each nickel costs 13.8 cents to produce, with 11 cents of production costs and 2.8 cents of administrative and distribution costs.

What about dimes and quarters? According to the US Mint, it costs less than six cents to make a dime, and about 15 cents to mint a quarter.

Eliminating the penny is a step closer to a cashless society in favor of a digital currency, but so far, coins and paper money will still be around for a while longer.