Do you think the government should stop manufacturing PENNIES and use Nickels as the smallest amount coin?

Answer 1

yes!

A penny represents a net cost to the government.
According to an April 22, 2006 New York Times article, at today’s prices of zinc and copper, it now costs 1.4 cents to make a penny. The metal prices alone make up 0.8 cents of that, and the remaining 0.6 cents are labor costs.
The U.S. Mint is paid a penny to make one. When the cost of making a penny was still below 1 cent, the difference between the two represented a profit for the Government whenever pennies were taken out of circulation when the public losed or saved them (seigniorage).
However, this didn’t tell the whole story. With the added cost to the Federal Reserve System of handling pennies, the General Accounting Office calculated that in 1994, although it cost only 0.7 or 0.8 cents to make a penny, there was a net cost of $8.5 million to $9.2 million to the government to produce pennies (see the section “Penny Production and Distribution Were Not Profitable to the Government in Fiscal Year 1994” on page 4 of this USGAO report (pdf)).
But now even the U.S. Mint loses money on each penny.

[1.2] Pennies take time to count.
A study found that handling pennies added an average of 3 seconds to each cash transaction. “Add up every transaction that takes place across North America,” says Prof. Palmer, “even if you only multiply that time by the minimum wage, it adds to up to millions of dollars of time wasted.” —Alberta Report/Western Report, August 15, 1994 (online source). Further, counting and rolling pennies at the end of the day costs money to the retailer. Who pays for it? Ultimately, the consumer does.

[1.3] Pennies don’t work in most vending machines.
This is probably because the composition and weight of the cent coin was changed as recently as 1982, and because pennies prior to 1982 are still in circulation, vending machines must therefore be tooled to accept both. Taking the penny out of circulation would mean that a greater proportion of the coins currently in circulation would work in vending machines.
However, some vending machines already accept pennies, such as those in supermarket self-serve checkout lanes.

[1.4] You can’t buy anything with a penny.
You can’t buy ordinary paper by the sheet, or individual paperclips, or thumbtacks. Even the old “five and dime” stores have become dollar stores. The cheapest retail item I have ever found was a 3¢ piece of Bazooka Joe bubble gum. So pennies aren’t needed any more than nickels are for smaller transactions.

[1.5] U.S. military bases overseas don’t use pennies.
Because of the expense of transporting pennies, U.S. military bases abroad in Europe and Korea for the most part don’t use pennies. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be used at home.

[1.6] We will eventually have to eliminate the penny, anyway.
Soon, the cost of producing a cent coin will exceed the face value of the coin. When that happens, there will no longer be a profit in making them, and so the U.S. Mint will stop producing them unless the U.S. Treasury pays the additional cost. Ultimately, who pays the U.S. Treasury? We all do.
But see Debate #3 for some possible alternatives to abolishing the penny.

[1.7] We (and other countries) did it before, and we can do it again.
The U.S. Mint used to make a ½-cent coin, but has since ceased production of them. Somehow we managed to cope with all the issues such as rounding to the nearest cent, and this was back when half a cent was worth about what a dime is today. Australia and New Zealand stopped producing their 1-cent coins back in the 1980’s with few if any ill effects (see also Debate #3.6). If they can do it, I’m sure we can, too.
However, this is just a red herring fallacy—just because it’s been done before, it doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be done again.

[1.8] The zinc industry lobbies for keeping the penny in
production.
The argument that the zinc industry, financed by Canadian and Alaskan mines, lobbies for keeping the cent coin in circulation was put forth by the Coin Coalition in response to the Americans for Common Cents’ assertion that the copper industry lobbies for taking the cent coin out of production. See Debate #2.4 for a rebuttal.

[1.9] Pennies make your hands smell.
Pennies don’t necessarily have to be made of whatever it is that makes pennies smell. See Debate #3.1.

[1.10] We need to make room in cash register trays for the dollar coin.

Answer 2

We're heading in that direction. I can't think of a single thing that costs less than a nickle, and pennies now cost MORE than a penny each to mint, so I see no reason for the penny to still exist. I tend to throw mine away. If I'm leaving a store with a handful of change, the pennies usually hit the ground before I reach my car, while the silver goes into the center console for future use.

Answer 3

Yes. It's got to cost more now to make a penny than it's worth However, I'm sure the stock marked would take a huge hit if the penny was eliminated as stocks are often reported in fractions of a penny.

Answer 4

No!! What would you throw at freshmen? Or give to people for their thoughts? Or fill up the giant hinkley and schmidt bottles with? Plus, I'm from Illinois, the only state that still allows pennies in its tolls. We are the Land of Lincoln you know. Wow. I never knew I was so passionate about the penny. Finally. Some sort of meaning in my life.

Answer 5

Yes, the rounding off system seems to work well in Europe.

Answer 6

nope

Answer 7

yes, because machines don't take them and they just take up room in your change purse.

Answer 8

no

Answer 9

no