âť“WHAT HAPPENED: The United States stopped minting pennies after 232 years of production.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Treasurer of the United States Brandon Beach, President Donald J. Trump, and U.S. Mint officials.
đź“ŤWHEN & WHERE: The final pennies were minted this week at the Philadelphia Mint.
💬KEY QUOTE: “God bless America, and we’re going to save the taxpayers $56 million.” – Brandon Beach
🎯IMPACT: Billions of pennies remain in circulation as legal tender, but their production has officially ended.
The United States federal government ceased minting pennies on Wednesday, ending the coin’s 232-year use in the country. A final run of pennies was struck at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, with Treasurer of the United States Brandon Beach marking the occasion, saying, “God bless America, and we’re going to save the taxpayers $56 million.”
While the penny’s production has been halted, there remain billions of the one-cent-denominated coin in circulation, and the coin will remain legal tender. Notably, this will be the first time since 1857 that the federal government has halted the minting of a coin. The half-cent piece was the last coin discontinued, just prior to the American Civil War.
In February, President Donald J. Trump signed an order directing the U.S. Mint to halt production of pennies. The administration contends the coin—which costs more to produce than its denominated value—is obsolete in the modern age. “For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents,” the America First leader wrote in a post on Truth Social, adding: “This is so wasteful!”
This past summer, the Mint began slowing down penny production, with the final coins struck this week. The U.S. is following in the footsteps of other nations, such as Canada, which stopped producing pennies in 2012, and Australia, which removed its one-cent coins in 1992.
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