State lawmakers rush to set rounding rules for when there are no pennies [View all]

Source: ABC News/AP

March 12, 2026, 12:05 AM


Months after the last of the United States' 1-cent coins were pressed, some states are beginning to offer their own 2 cents on the penny problem by setting rounding guidance for cash purchases. President Donald Trump announced early last year an end to penny production, saying it was wasteful. It cost 3.7 cents to make each 1-cent coin in 2024, according to the U.S. Mint.

The move led to a shortage of pennies in cash registers last summer, forcing consumers and businesses to confront a penniless future in which making exact change would be difficult. The Treasury Department has said it will continue circulating the roughly 114 billion pennies that exist for “as long as possible.” Pennies must still be accepted as payment.

One solution to the penny problem is rounding to the nearest nickel, using a practice called symmetrical rounding. If the final price, after taxes, ends in one, two, six or seven cents, payment in cash rounds down. For example, $1.91 or $1.92 becomes $1.90. If the price ends in three, four, eight or nine, cash payment rounds up. For $1.98 or $1.99, the consumer pays $2.

A bill introduced last year in Congress and passed out of the House financial services committee would apply symmetrical rounding across the country. U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., said in an email the federal law is important to prevent a “confusing patchwork of state policies.” The bill hasn’t been voted on in the House and would still need to move through the U.S. Senate before reaching Trump’s desk.

Read more: https://abcnews.com/Lifestyle/wireStory/state-lawmakers-rush-set-rounding-rules-pennies-130990013