The days of “penny for your thoughts” and throwing one cent coins into fountains to make a wish may soon be over. President Donald Trump announced in a February 9th Truth Social post that he plans to do away with the American penny. This is not the first time that our government has looked to eliminate the one cent coin, as legislation was introduced as early as 1989. So far nothing has been set in stone, as decisions regarding US currency have historically required congressional approval, though an executive order could put a temporary ban on penny production. If the proposal does pan out long term, it could have various benefits for the nation’s economy.
The main argument against pennies is their illogical valuation. In 2024, 3.2 billion pennies were minted, making up more than 57% of all 5.61 billion coins produced last year. Though they are only worth one cent as currency, it actually requires around 3.7 cents worth of zinc and copper to mint each American penny. This adds up: according to the U.S. Mint’s 2024 annual report, penny production costs 85 million dollars more than the coin’s actual value. Especially as the national debt now exceeds $36 trillion as of March 2025, it is wasteful to invest so much into an outdated unit of currency, as the penny is quickly becoming useless in the face of rising costs.
Not only is the penny’s value nearly worthless, but cash and coins in general are falling out of use amid the rise of credit cards and online payment apps, especially among the younger generations. Americans are sick of having spare change jingling around in their pockets, especially when the coins are only worth one cent. According to The Federal Reserve, only 16% of all transactions in 2023 were paid in cash, and this percentage has been on a steady annual decline since 2016. Thus, there’s even less need for the USD’s smallest denomination.
So far, President Trump’s plan is simply to direct his Treasury Secretary to stop the production of pennies. This means that already minted pennies will still be available and usable nationwide. If Congress chooses to go through with the plan, it will then be a question of whether pennies will still be legal tender, or if businesses must round prices to the next smallest coin, the five-cent nickel.
The main argument for keeping pennies hinges on this line of reasoning, claiming that eliminating the coin would raise prices. A common marketing technique is to price a product at however many dollars and 99 cents, in hopes of making it appear more affordable. In this scenario, companies would either lower price tags to end in 95 cents, or raise them to the next dollar. And while some companies would likely choose to raise prices, using this as an excuse, it is equally as likely that other businesses would lower prices.
The penny is not only unreasonable in an economic sense, but also in an environmental sense. Penny production in the U.S. Mints in Philadelphia and Denver contribute to carbon dioxide and other pollutant emissions, which harms air quality and contributes to a declining ozone layer. The energy needed to mine zinc and copper for penny production can harm our environment as well.
While some experts say that eliminating the penny will drastically disrupt our economy and cost structure, other countries have successfully banned their lowest denomination coin without major issues. Australia removed their one-cent coin and two-cent coin from circulation in 1992, and Canada stopped minting pennies in 2012. We should be next.