DOGE vs. the Penny


Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency may be taking aim at eliminating the one-cent piece.

In a post on X, DOGE highlighted the penny’s mounting cost of production. In recent years there have been many discussions about eliminating the production of our one-cent piece. Now, DOGE is taking an interest.

In 2023, the Mint produced 4.5 billion pennies at a cost on $86 million. That comes to about $0.02 to produce each penny. (Nickels added another $93 million to the cost, or $0.065/each.) The penny’s unit cost to produce rose 12.9% in 2023.

Other countries, including Canada and Sweden have stopped producing one-cent coins:

  • Canada in 2012
  • Sweden in 1971
  • Switzerland in 2006
  • Bahamas in 2014
  • Jamaica in 2012

A 2020 survey found that 58% of people agreed that new penny production should cease. Is our one-cent coin collecting coming to an end?


Monday, January 27th, 2025 Uncategorized