Across the top of the penny, it states, In God We Trust. If Arizona Congressman John Kolbe gets his way and the penny is retired, we are going to have to trust retailers and companies. They could easily price their products so that the final price will fall at $.03 or $04 or $.08 and $.09 to ensure the sale is rounded off to nearest five cents, which will be higher. Should the bill end at $.01 or $02 or $.06 or $.07, retailers lose and the customer gets the savings.The Tucson lawmaker, who will be out of office come January because he is retiring after 12 terms in Congress, has been pushing his bill to do away with pennies because they are a counting-house nuisance and they cost government more than their 1-cent value to produce. Obviously, theres many implications here, not the least of it is the room for price abuse. They say its the first time in history that the zinc-based penny with its copper coating is costing more than a penny to make, or about 1.23 cents per penny. An analysis found the cost of labor, transportation and related expenses has pushed penny manufacturing costs up by 27 percent in the past year.
Polls have found that 55 percent of Americans want to keep the penny in circulation. Findings of the June USA Today/Gallup Poll of more than 1,000 people, however, showed there is a lowering in support for its retention. A 1993 ABC poll gave it 64 percent support. USA Today reports that the U.S. Mint produced some 7.7 billion pennies in 2005 or half of all coins minted in the country. They have been selling them to the Federal Reserve for a profit of $730 million, but new production costs are taking that down to $45 million this year.
Seems like now is the perfect time for a save-the-penny movement, led by charities and non-profits who could amass a windfall. (We could insert the sarcasm that cheap folks would no longer be able to put their pennies into the collection plate anymore). Clearly what needs to be done is to convince Americans to empty their piggybanks, jugs and dresser drawers. They need to put them into rolls or take them directly to places where machines can rapidly process them for recirculation.
A better idea would be for the non-profit world to recognize the opportunity for a great windfall. Charities, including the faith community, should carry out an effective campaign to get the public to simply donate, to them, their massive supplies of socked-away pennies. The charities could tally the donations for the donors’ tax records. More importantly it would be charities duty to get the pennies back into U.S. circulation in such large quantities that the mints could, at least temporarily, close. Meanwhile, the charities would get the easy cash donations. It would behoove them to provide various incentives to get people to turn in their idle pennies. Such a turn-in could be a regular habit for people. Pennies could be regarded as the stuff for favorite charities or church cause.
It’s estimated that about $10.5 billion in pennies are idly sitting in homes mostly collecting dust. That comes out to $93.75 per household, according to one estimate.
Even if, by chance, Congress eliminates the penny, its last hurrah should be a call-up of the vast stockpiles of home pennies and that they be turned into donations for organizations of their choice. By getting them off the hands of the hoarders, many could benefit. Make pennies the automatic gift to charities.
