A new bill has been introduced in support of President Trump’s idea to stop producing new pennies.
The Currency Optimization, Innovation, and National Savings (COINS) Act was introduced by GOP Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona, and would stop the production of any new pennies for the next ten years. According to the bill, enough pennies have been produced to negate any need for creating new ones for the next decade.
Producing a penny costs the U.S. Mint 3.69 cents on average.
“Eighty-five million taxpayer dollars were spent on the production of new pennies in 2024, and no one even batted an eye. President Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency have spent weeks rooting out government waste and fraud. Congress must support their efforts by codifying President Trump’s America First priorities — like his move to stop minting new pennies. At more than $36 trillion in debt, every single cent counts,” Biggs said.
“For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let's rip the waste out of our great nation[']s budget, even if it's a penny at a time,” Trump said in a Truth Social post last week.
For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let's rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it's a penny at a…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) February 10, 2025
The Republicans in Congress seem to be following in the steps of the new administration in its quest to cut down on spending, as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk, has been spearheading that effort.
Regarding the notion of halting the creation of new pennies, a post from the X DOGE account says that “[T]he penny costs over 3 cents to make and costs US taxpayers over $179 million in FY2023. The Mint produced over 4.5 billion pennies in FY2023, around 40% of the 11.4 billion coins for circulation produced. Penny (or 3 cents!) for your thoughts.”
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