President Donald Trump directed the Treasury Department to stop minting new pennies, CBS News reported, marking his latest executive action aimed at cutting government spending. "For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The US Mint lost $85.3 million during fiscal year 2024 producing nearly 3.2 billion pennies, with each coin costing about 3.7 cents to manufacture – an increase from 3.1 cents the previous year. The directive comes as part of a broader cost-cutting initiative led by newly appointed efficiency advisor Elon Musk, who highlighted the penny's production costs on social media platform X last month.
While Trump had not discussed eliminating the penny during his campaign, the move aligns with his administration's rapid series of executive actions spanning immigration policy to federal workforce reductions. Legal experts note that congressional approval may be required to formally discontinue the penny, as Congress traditionally oversees currency specifications.
Previous congressional proposals have ranged from temporary production suspensions to complete elimination of the penny, with supporters citing potential cost savings and faster retail transactions. Several countries, including Canada in 2012, have already eliminated their lowest-denomination coins. The US previously discontinued its half-cent coin through congressional action in 1857.
"Let's rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it's a penny at a time," Trump wrote from New Orleans, where he was watching the Super Bowl.
