Proposed legislation on penny change

[TXBullion]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationn ... ents-.html

[Tourney64]

Another politician looking at what it would do for his state, by saying they need to be produced with US steel, and him and the 3 other politicians supporting the bill are from the steel belt. How about a politician from a state in the corn belt recommending they be made from corn based plastics.

[everything]

Agreed, remember going to the MREA in Custer and getting a pen made from corn. American in all it's beauty. Billion dollar market cap corporations all with an idea to save the planet but you can give em a zero when it comes to working collectively.

[penny pretty]

you would have to wonder if the new coins would be made with US steel. China has a HUGE edge over us in steel production. if saving $$ is the reason, we will use chinese steel to make american coins. If saving jobs is the reason, buy more expensive american steel and see no savings for a long time after changes in production, vending.etc..

[dtfstock]

Any idea what a steel penny would cost to make? I would think it would still be over $0.01

[henrysmedford]

As a saver of Canadian cents from what I can tell in 2011 most ones were zinc and at the end of the year they were steel. Canada made there first test steel cent in 1999 and have made both steel and zinc so if steel was less they would have stayed steel. I would say they the US cent steel or zinc will cost over a cent to make. No real savings.

[Chief]

Just do away with the penny. And the melt ban.

[Robarons]

Steel coinage is extremely cheap to make and will remain for under a 1 cent for some time.

Also I think why Canada goes back and forth between zinc/steel cents is that they would prefer to make zincs whenever possible and switch to steel when zinc prices rise. Like in 2007 Zinc was through the roof, but in 2008 it lost 50% or more of its value.

[everything]

That is interesting trivia on the Canadian cent, and should not be a surprise looking at different composition changes they have done in recent past with the coin.

[Rob72830]

Maybe its time for the mint to reconsider aluminum cents.

[henrysmedford]

Maybe its time for the mint to reconsider aluminum cents.

220px-1974Aluminumfront.jpg (13.94 KiB) Viewed 413 times

1974 aluminium cent
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 1974 aluminium cent was a one-cent coin proposed by the United States Mint in 1973. It was composed of an alloy of aluminium and trace metals, and intended to replace the predominantly copper–zinc cent due to the rising costs of coin production in the traditional bronze alloy. 1,571,167 were struck in anticipation of release, but none were released into circulation. Examples were passed out to US Congressmen in a bid to win favor in switching to the new alloy. When the proposed aluminium cent was rejected, the Mint recalled and destroyed the examples. A few aluminium cents not returned to the Mint are believed to remain in existence. One example was donated to the Smithsonian Institution, while another was alleged to have been found by a US Capitol Police Officer. Since the United States Secret Service is tasked with the seizure of any specimens, the legality of the coins is in doubt.
History

In late 1973, the price of copper on world markets rose to a point where the metallic value of the cent was almost equal to its face value.[1][2][3] The U.S. Mint, which produces billions of cents annually, was faced with a potentially catastrophic operating deficit, due to issues of seigniorage. As a result, the Mint tested alternate metals, including aluminium and bronze-clad steel.[4] A composition of 96% aluminium (with trace elements for stability) was chosen.[1][5] The composition was chosen due to its longevity on coin die use, and aluminium's high resistance to tarnishing.[6] 1,571,167 examples of the new cents were struck.[1][5] Although they were produced in 1973, they were struck using 1974 dated dies in anticipation of release into circulation in that year.[1][4]

In an effort to gain acceptance for the new composition, the Mint distributed approximately three dozen examples to various members of the House Banking and Currency Committee and the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. Nine congressmen and four senators received examples, along with some Treasury officials.[1] Additional specimens were given out by then Mint Director Mary Brooks.[5] Ultimately, the proposal was rejected in Congress, due mainly to the efforts of the copper-mining and vending machine industries,[7] which felt the coins would cause mechanical problems.[8] Opposition also came from pediatricians and pediatric radiologists who pointed out the radiodensity of the metal inside the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts was close to that of soft tissue, and therefore would be difficult to detect in X-ray imaging.[8] In addition, the price of copper declined enough that making copper cents would again be economically viable, and conversely made hoarding pointless. The idea of changing the composition of the cent would not be explored again until the 1980s. In 1982 the composition of the coin was changed to the current 99.2% zinc and 0.8% copper core alloy with a plating of pure copper and a 20% weight reduction.[9]

After the setback, the US Mint recalled the coins, but about a dozen[10] to 14[1] aluminium cents were never returned to the mint. No oversight, record keeping, or statement that the coins had to be returned was made by the US Mint as examples were handed out.[1] When Federal Bureau of Investigation and other government law enforcement agencies were called in to investigate, however, some congressmen feigned ignorance and/or denied getting examples.[1] They are now considered government property, and are subject to seizure by the Secret Service,[11] though the legality of the cent is questioned by numismatists.[1][5] One aluminium cent was donated to the Smithsonian Institution for the National Numismatic Collection.[1][6] Since no examples have been put up for public or known private sale,[12] it is difficult to estimate their value.

The coin is considered by a few numismatists not as a pattern coin but rather a rejected or cancelled regular issue despite being listed in pattern books.[4]
[edit] Toven Specimen

In the February 20, 2001, edition of Numismatic News, Alan Herbert reported the existence of an aluminium cent. It was attributed to US Capitol Police Officer Albert Toven who found the coin dropped by an unnamed US Congressman on the floor of the Rayburn Office Building. When the officer attempted to return the coin to the congressman, thinking it was a dime, the congressman told him to keep it.[1][13] This example was graded and certified by the Independent Coin Grading Company as “About Uncirculated-58” in 2005, but later certified Mint State 62 two months later by Professional Coin Grading Service.[1][4][5][13][14]

[Country]

I tried to get some of these in 1974. Unfortunately, the mint wouldn't let me have any....

[knibloe]

Any idea what a steel penny would cost to make? I would think it would still be over $0.01

I just read an article where the mint said it cost 2.41 cents to make a penny. Coinflation lists the metal content at .55 cents. That is a difference of 1.86 cents. If the mint figures it's cost of production is 1.86 cents, there is no way that they can make a penny for und 1 cent no matter what it is made out of.

Also, the same article quoted the mint saying that it cost them 11.18 cents to make a nickel. The metal cost is 5.5 cents. They are saying it costs them roughly 5.7 cents to product the thing.

I say that they are messing with the numbers to make it look worse than it is. The mint wants the power to skrew around with things on a whim. I hope that congress does not relinquish their power.