Congress looking to do away with the $1 bill?
American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach. They may not know what’s best for them either. Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.
Vending machine operators have long championed the use of $1 coins because they don’t jam the machines, cutting down on repair costs and lost sales. But most people don’t seem to like carrying them. In the past five years, the U.S. Mint has produced 2.4 billion Presidential $1 coins. Most are stored by the Federal Reserve, and production was suspended about a year ago.
The latest projection from the Government Accountability Office on the potential savings from switching to dollar coins entirely comes as lawmakers begin exploring new ways for the government to save money by changing the money itself.
Blowback
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I like the idea of the coins. Do away with paper bills altogether.
BigGator5 on November 30, 2012 at 5:43 PM
So we would pretty much save nothing.
El_Terrible on November 30, 2012 at 5:43 PM
We gnawed a while on this the other day.
davidk on November 30, 2012 at 5:45 PM
Well if the do go with the coins, will bho’s face be on it?
This is a horrible idea. Who wants a purse or pocket full of coins not bills? NOT me!
L
letget on November 30, 2012 at 5:46 PM
Freedom of choice: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/11/30/state-judge-rules-louisiana-school-voucher-program-unconstitutional/?test=latestnews
davidk on November 30, 2012 at 5:48 PM
They’ve been trying to do this for a long time now. Same with forcing us into the metric system.
I’d bet that the new dollar coins will be locked up forever with the old dollar coins they couldn’t get people to use.
Rebar on November 30, 2012 at 5:50 PM
I’m wondering if that is not what this is all about, getting rid of the paper in order to make a new coin with the King’s face on it?
JPeterman on November 30, 2012 at 5:53 PM
This idiotic idea again?
Stop trying to get me to carry more change. It’s heavy, bulky, and more difficult to work with. As a consumer, it detracts, not improves, my ability to engage in commerce. Let me use bloody bills you megalomaniacal metalheads!
Oh, and Sacagawea can go suck a lemon.
Stoic Patriot on November 30, 2012 at 5:54 PM
It’ll be like Cash-for-Clunkers for vending machine manufacturers…
Lawdawg86 on November 30, 2012 at 5:54 PM
I don’t fancy the idea of carrying around a coin purse.
Lawdawg86 on November 30, 2012 at 5:55 PM
Why don’t we make the dollar bill more valuable by issuing a new currency that is worth a damn. Issue the New Dollar that is worth $10 in today’s currency.
SC.Charlie on November 30, 2012 at 5:55 PM
Stupidest idea I ever heard.
Who ever thought it up ought to be fired.
Are we gonna’ go back to the colonial days when everyone carried their coin around in little leather sacks that jingled when you threw one to somebody…?
Are we going to put all our money in a bucket when we go through the airport screener?
4 billion over 30 years…?
It will all be lost in all the extra time and work it takes to lug those silly things around.
NeoKong on November 30, 2012 at 5:55 PM
The increased noise factor will make it easier for Obama voters to identify and roll potential targets.
viking01 on November 30, 2012 at 5:57 PM
Probably a really good idea when hyperinflation kick in and $1 is more like 0.001 cent.
The Rogue Tomato on November 30, 2012 at 5:59 PM
Only saves 4.4 billion?
That’s less than Moochelle spends on lobster and vacays.
viking01 on November 30, 2012 at 6:00 PM
Seriously? That’s their argument?
Saving $4.4 Billion (less than 10 hours worth Obama’s current deficit spending, btw) over frickin’ 30 YEARS ???
LMAO
Norwegian on November 30, 2012 at 6:07 PM
Here is an idea, let’s do away with all the $1 bills from every Congresscritter’s paycheck for 6 years. That’ll save a bundle.
Limerick on November 30, 2012 at 6:08 PM
Yeah. And 30 years from now if it doesn’t will anyone remember?
Nothing the government does ever saves the government money. Especially since saving money is the least concern of government.
JellyToast on November 30, 2012 at 6:09 PM
So Jindal’s plan to teach students that ‘The Loch Ness Monster Is Real; The KKK Is Good’ has to be put off for now.
lester on November 30, 2012 at 6:11 PM
In 2012, the federal government is spending around $7.2 million per minute. (3.796 trillion / 365 days / 24 hours / 60 minutes)
“replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.”
Therefore, savings of 4.4 billion over 30 years will pay for 20 minutes of government spending each year. (4.4 billion / 30 years / 7.2 million)
“Moving to multiplated steel for coins would save the government nearly $200 million a year, he said.”
Savings up $200 million per year will pay for 27 minutes of government spending each year. (200 million / 7.2 million)
All in all, by implementing a plan that may inconvenience millions of Americans, the government can easily fund a solid 47 minutes of its continued spending spree each year.
Miguel: [sarcastically] Great. Sensational. That’s your plan, is it?
Tuilo: That’s… pretty much it, yeah.
Miguel: [delighted] Well, I like it! So how do we get on deck?
- The Road to El Dorado, IMDB, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0138749/quotes?qt0336645
Nephew Sam on November 30, 2012 at 6:17 PM
What a buncha whiny little snots. How many 1 dollar bills are you poor sods carrying around? Why not try to show some concern for all the single moms/strippers that this would impact instead of this “oh, these coins are so heavy, I can’t carry them” whinging.
JohnBrown on November 30, 2012 at 6:21 PM
save 4.4 billion over 30, yes 30! years for the federal government. Cost the economy orders of magnitude more.
It may not seem too much, but the small dollar coin slightly bigger than a quarter weighs about 50 per lb. When a bank needs to move a million of them from one place to another that million coins weighs 20,000 lbs compared to a million dollar bills which weighs just 2,200 lbs.
All that weight will bear down on the economy far more than 4.4 billion over 30 years.
Anyone think that 30 years of moving these coins around just for the BANKING system will cost less than 4.4 billion is just nuts.
Just for moving money around, Armoured vehicles are limited to 25,000 gross vehicle weight and the vehicles weigh around 12,000 lbs. Leaving 13,000 lbs available to transport the money.
So, a delivery of just 1 dollar units would be change from moving 5.85 million in one truck to a limit of $650,000. Now think about how much other currency will be pushed out of the truck if they have half a million in dollar coins. How many extra trips will be required?
astonerii on November 30, 2012 at 6:22 PM
Nothing so sinister (for once!). Most likely they would use the ongoing presidential dollar program. You can view the coins at the link below:
http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&categoryId=50012&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=16238&top_category=16238
Doomberg on November 30, 2012 at 6:22 PM
QTY______#/lb___Total_Lb__#/in^3____Total Volume
1000000__50_____20000_____14.9______67114.09396
1000000__450____2222______14.5______68965.51724
astonerii on November 30, 2012 at 6:24 PM
Strippers hardest hit.
The Count on November 30, 2012 at 6:33 PM
They do not like $1 bills much. Pushing men to use $5 might make them happier.
In Japan they had shows… where coins would come in handy.
astonerii on November 30, 2012 at 6:35 PM
As I posted yesterday, this is a stupid idea.
peski on November 30, 2012 at 6:40 PM
Product of government schools.
davidk on November 30, 2012 at 6:44 PM
I do love the old, real silver dollars. That was when a dollar was really worth a dollar.
SC.Charlie on November 30, 2012 at 6:54 PM
Makes it close to impossible for them to steal your wealth.
astonerii on November 30, 2012 at 7:01 PM
I can’t stand pennies, they need to go away. I’m ambivalent about dollar coins, they are fun in Canada.
alwaysfiredup on November 30, 2012 at 7:12 PM
The progs tell us we can’t cut PBS and save $6 billion over the next 30 years because it’s just too small a program to cut (TSTF) but we should do away with the dollar to save even less. Genius.
BTW it would cost the economy quite a bit up front to change over. Of course, we don’t hear about these costs from Congress because we’re their cattle.
WeekendAtBernankes on November 30, 2012 at 8:13 PM
If democrats are good for the country and democrat agencies like ACORN, Planned Parenthood, MMFA, NPR, PBS, MSNBC, CNN, etc., are good for America, then the KKK, as a democrat agency composed of white male democrats playing dress-up, must be good as well by progressive logic. Amirite?
WeekendAtBernankes on November 30, 2012 at 8:18 PM