Small Businesses Brace for Penny Phaseout as Cash Change Gets Complicated
States and retailers implement varied rounding policies amid a national penny shortage, with major chains reporting over 1,000 stores lacking pennies, causing legal and consumer concerns.
- On Nov. 12, 2025, the U.S. Mint ended production of the circulating one-cent coin, marking the penny's final production run.
- Because one-cent coins cost about 3.7 cents each, the Mint produced about 3.2 billion pennies in fiscal 2024 and said suspending production would save roughly $56 million per year.
- By mid-November, retailers reported six national chains with more than 1,000 stores without pennies, prompting merchants like Kwik Trip and Sheetz to adopt rounding rules and push cashless payments.
- State actions aim to mitigate legal and consumer risks by New York adopting five-cent rounding, while Georgia, Utah, and at least eight major cities require cash acceptance amid risks of class-action lawsuits and SNAP rules issues.
- Policy experts recommend symmetrical rounding, and U.S. House and Senate bipartisan lawmakers are urging federal guidance, but no bills have reached a floor vote.
22 Articles
22 Articles
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