Trump Orders To Stop Penny Production Citing Wasteful Spending: What To Know

U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered an end to the production of one-cent coins, commonly known as pennies, as part of a cost-cutting initiative. Announcing the decision on his Truth Social account, Trump framed the move to stop penny production as an effort to reduce government waste.

Elon Musk’s Influence on the Decision

“Let’s rip the waste out of our great nation’s budget, even if it’s a penny at a time,” Trump stated in his post.

The directive instructs U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to stop minting new pennies, a decision that follows growing scrutiny over the coin’s production costs.

The announcement comes after Elon Musk’s unofficial Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) highlighted the high cost of penny production in a post on X last month. The debate over whether to discontinue the penny has been ongoing in the U.S. for years, with past proposals failing to gain traction.

The Cost of Producing Penny

According to the U.S. Mint’s 2024 annual report, manufacturing and distributing a single penny costs 3.69 cents—significantly more than its face value. This marks the 19th consecutive fiscal year that the cost of producing pennies has exceeded their nominal worth. The report also revealed that the U.S. Mint incurred an $85.3 million loss from penny production in the financial year 2024, which ended in September.

“This is so wasteful,” Trump wrote in his Truth Social post. “I have instructed my Secretary of the U.S. Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”

A Long-Standing Debate to Stop Penny Production

Over the years, U.S. lawmakers have proposed discontinuing the penny, but such efforts have repeatedly stalled. Critics argue that the coin is a waste of resources, citing its high production costs and declining purchasing power. On the other hand, supporters contend that eliminating the penny could lead to increased prices and would negatively impact charitable fundraising efforts, which often rely on penny donations.

Several other countries have already phased out similar low-value coins. Canada, for instance, discontinued its one-cent coin in 2012 due to rising production costs and declining purchasing power.

Nickels Also Cost More Than Their Face Value

Pennies are not the only coins costing the government more to produce than their monetary value. The U.S. Mint’s report states that in fiscal year 2024, each nickel (five-cent coin) cost 13.78 cents to manufacture. In total, the Mint lost $17.7 million on nickel production last year.

It remains to be seen how Congress will respond to Trump’s directive. Even if both chambers, currently controlled by the GOP, support the move, lawmakers may need to pass legislation addressing cash transactions that are not divisible by the next lowest denomination—the nickel. Previous legislative efforts have suggested rounding transactions to the nearest five-cent increment, either up or down.

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