Two cents doesn't equal a penny.
President Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency has a bright new goal: a mission to cut costs. Currently, the U.S. penny costs more than 3 cents to manufacture.
of X official account That's because DOGE, the reform arm led by billionaire Elon Musk, shared facts about U.S. penny production. This is an affront to both efficiency and frugality.
“One penny costs more than 3 cents to produce, costing U.S. taxpayers more than $179 million in 2023. The Mint produced more than 4.5 billion pennies in 2023; That's about 40% of the 11.4 billion coins produced for circulation,” DOGE tweeted.
Post refers to article from fortune The United States spent $179 million minting pennies and nickels in 2023, citing the U.S. Mint.
Last year was the 19th year in a row that the cost of producing a penny was higher than its face value, according to a March article.
It will cost 3.7 cents to make a penny in 2024; According to the US Mint.
In 2016, it cost the United States just 1.5 cents to produce a penny. One cent mark issued by the government was worth only $46 million. According to CBS News.
Nickels are the only U.S. banknotes whose production costs exceed face value. In 2023, each nickel will cost 11.5 cents to produce. According to the US Mint.
Fluctuations in metal market prices, manufacturing costs, and transportation costs result in high prices.
Pennies, which are commonly thought to be made of copper, are mostly made of zinc, with just a copper overlay to give the impression of a solid copper coin.
Zinc prices have doubled since 2016; According to the data From the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Led by the world's richest man, DOGE has pledged to cut up to $500 billion a year in wasteful spending across the executive branch.
