Treasury Department Officially Discontinues Pennies Starting in 2026

Treasury Department Officially Discontinues Pennies Starting in 2026. What Happens When There Are No New Pennies?

Meredith Kile  Fri, May 23, 2025

The Treasury just placed its final order of penny blanks, all of which are expected to be minted by early 2026. Eliminating the penny has been a bipartisan issue for years, as each coin costs nearly four cents to make

• The U.S. government has taken a large step toward finally eliminating the penny.

• The Treasury Department recently placed its final order of penny blanks to print the one-cent coins, and meaning new pennies will stop being put into circulation around early 2026.

• Eliminating the penny has been a bipartisan issue for years, as rising production costs mean the coins cost more to print than they’re worth.

The U.S. government took another step toward eliminating the penny this month, with the Treasury Department placing its final order of penny blanks to print new one-cent coins.

The move came after President Donald Trump announced on Feb. 9 that he had instructed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to “stop producing new pennies.”

"For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "This is so wasteful!"

"Let's rip the waste out of our great nation's budget, even if it's a penny at a time," the president added. 

Eliminating the penny has been a bipartisan issue for years, with both Trump and President Barack Obama, as well as both chambers of Congress, calling for an end to the one-cent coin.

The president is also correct in calling the penny “wasteful,” even underestimating the cost.

TO READ MORE:  https://www.yahoo.com/news/treasury-department-officially-discontinues-pennies-161120980.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall