The House yesterday passed by voice vote a revised version of legislation to officially end penny production and provide a framework for cash rounding when exact change cannot be provided.
President Trump last year directed the Treasury Department to stop producing pennies, noting that each penny costs more to make than it is worth. The Common Cents Act [H.R. 10167] by Reps. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) and Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) officially orders the Treasury to cease penny production and requires cash transactions to be rounded up or down to the nearest five cents while clarifying that checks, credit cards and other noncash payment methods are not subject to rounding.
The House passed a similar version of the bill earlier this year, which was then amended in the Senate. The version passed yesterday includes new language requiring the Treasury Department to give Congress 60 days’ advance notice before discontinuing any circulating coin. It also allows the Treasury Secretary to explore a new metals composition for nickel manufacturing to save costs.
The legislation now heads to the Senate.
The American Bankers Association expressed its support for the earlier version of the legislation in a letter to lawmakers earlier this year. “By directing the secretary of the Treasury to cease production of the one-cent coin while preserving the legal tender status of existing pennies, this bill would help modernize the nation’s coinage system and reduce unnecessary costs associated with the production, handling, and distribution of pennies,” ABA said.
