President Donald Trump has instructed the U.S. Treasury to stop producing the one-cent coin, arguing that continuing to mint pennies is fiscally wasteful because the cost of making them far exceeds their face value. The move has reignited debate over the efficiency of physical fiat currency and the economics of low-denomination coins.
A key trigger for the decision was scrutiny from the Department of Government Efficiency, or D.O.G.E., led by Elon Musk. According to the report, the agency highlighted that penny production alone cost the government more than $179 million in fiscal year 2023, with over 4.5 billion new pennies introduced during that period.
Mint data shows deep losses
Data from the U.S. Mint supports Trump’s argument. Last year, each penny reportedly cost $0.037 to produce, more than three times its $0.01 face value. The article also notes that the Mint lost more than $85.3 million in the last fiscal year from penny coinage alone.
Trump said the United States had been minting pennies for too long even though each coin effectively cost more than two cents to make. He described the practice as wasteful and said he had directed the Treasury Secretary to stop producing new pennies, framing the move as part of a broader effort to remove waste from the national budget.
Can the president actually end the penny?
That question remains unsettled. Analysts noted that Congress determines the size and metal specifications of U.S. coins, which raises doubts about whether a president can unilaterally eliminate the penny as a denomination.
Still, experts suggested that ending minting may be different from abolishing the coin itself. Robert K. Triest, an economics professor at Northeastern University, said the Treasury Secretary might simply have the authority to stop producing new pennies without changing the coin’s legal specification.
Nickel could face similar pressure
The penny may not be the only coin under scrutiny. Experts cited in the report warned that the nickel could be next, as its economics are also unfavorable. A coin with a $0.05 face value reportedly costs nearly $0.14 to produce.
More broadly, Trump’s action on the penny is being framed as part of a wider campaign to reduce government waste and improve administrative efficiency. With D.O.G.E. continuing to examine public-sector spending, even long-overlooked details of coin production may now become part of a larger fiscal reform debate.