U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat, has co-sponsored legislation that would stop the production of pennies.
Merkley and Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah introduced the bipartisan "Make Sense Not Cents Act" Wednesday, stating that it currently costs nearly 4 cents to mint each penny, far exceeding its value and costing taxpayers over $85 million annually.
In a news release, Merkley said “It’s the opposite of ‘common cents’ for taxpayers’ dollars to fund wasteful spending like producing pennies. The 'Make Sense Not Cents Act' will save taxpayers millions—and that is something that both Democrats and Republicans support to seriously take on government waste.”
“Minting pennies costs the American taxpayer millions every year – nearly four times more than the pennies are worth,” said Lee. “No private business would produce something at a 4x loss. It’s time to stop wasting Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars making overpriced pennies.”
With only 16% of transactions made in cash and most pennies never recirculating, the bill would eliminate penny production while allowing existing coins to remain in circulation.
Both Presidents Trump and Obama have previously supported such an effort.