Common Cents Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3074, the Common Cents Act, sponsored by Representative McClain. I thank Representative McClain, along with Representative Robert Garcia, for their work on this legislation.

The idea to end penny production is not a new one. In fact, other countries, like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, have stopped producing pennies themselves. However, many of these countries executed this plan through a deliberate and meaningful process.

Unlike the approach taken by other countries, in February 2025, President Donald Trump abruptly announced on his Truth Social media account that he directed the Treasury to stop minting pennies. This decision, not surprisingly, ignored the critical role and constitutional authority of Congress in regulating the currency.

While the Secretary of the Treasury did carry out President Trump's orders, the administration failed to provide a strategic plan or guidance for the public on how to handle this change, which would impact all segments of the economy.

This sudden decision is emblematic of how the administration carries out policy. They do it suddenly, without expert engagement, without feedback, and without consideration of potential harms.

For these reasons, I was glad to see that Ranking Member Waters, the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill), Representative McClain, and Representative Garcia worked together for over a year to thoughtfully provide much-needed clarity to businesses and consumers in this legislation.

In its current form, this bill has made significant improvements from when it was first marked up in our committee. As drafted, the bill now allows businesses to round cash transactions if exact change cannot be provided, and it also authorizes businesses to continue to round in favor of customers.

This legislation also requires the Federal Reserve to prepare a strategic plan in connection with managing the circulation of the penny. Additionally, the bill will now grapple with potential unintended consequences that come from ending penny production, like rounding cash transactions on low-income and unbanked communities and more.

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the gentleman from Arkansas for his leadership on this. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I congratulate Mrs. McClain and Mr. Garcia for their good work. The administration has already ceased penny production, but this legislation does the necessary work of providing meaningful guidance for consumers and businesses across the country.

Mr. Speaker, I again urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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