一分錢的成本超過3美分，導致納稅人成本“超過1.79億美元”到2023年

政府效率部可能很快就將目光投向了美國的貨幣，可能希望消除一分錢

The United States currency may soon be under scrutiny by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), with a potential focus on eliminating the penny, recent social posts suggest.

美國貨幣可能很快受到政府效率部（DOGE）的審查，潛在的重點是消除一分錢，最近的社會帖子建議。

In a post on X on Tuesday, DOGE highlighted that the penny costs more than three pennies to make, leading to “over $179 million” in taxpayer costs through 2023.

在周二X上的一篇文章中，Doge強調說，一分錢的成本超過三分，導致納稅人成本“超過1.79億美元”到2023年。

Data from the US Mint shows that pennies accounted for over half of the 5.9 billion circulating coin shipments from the Federal Reserve in 2024. The cost of pennies has also risen to 3.69 cents, with the coin consistently “remaining above face value” over the last two decades.

美國造幣廠的數據表明，一分錢在2024年從美聯儲的59億枚循環硬幣發貨中的一半以上。便士的成本也增加到3.69美分，而硬幣在最後一台持續的“保持面值”始終如一地上漲二十年。

Around 3.23 billion pennies were minted in 2024, according to the US Mint, compared to 4.52 billion in 2023.

根據美國造幣廠的數據，2024年約有32.3億便士被鑄造，而2023年為45.2億。

As DOGE is tasked to look into several aspects of government spending, the question of continuing to produce coins that have seen less use in recent years is now up for discussion.

由於Doge的任務是研究政府支出的幾個方面，因此繼續生產近年來使用較少使用的硬幣的問題現在正在討論。

But how valid are the department’s concerns about cash?

但是，部門對現金的擔憂有多有效？

According to the Federal Reserve’s Diary of Consumer Payments Choice report, cash was the third-most-used payment method in 2024, “though its share of all payments declined as the total number of payments increased.”

根據美聯儲的消費者支付選擇日記報告，現金是2024年第三大的付款方式，“儘管隨著付款總數的增加，其所有付款的份額下降了。”

However, cash payments among Americans remained stable, with an average of seven payments per month made in cash by each person.

但是，美國人的現金付款保持穩定，每個人平均每月以現金付款7款。

The demographic that used cash the most included low-income households and individuals aged 55 and older. In-person shopping was also a key driver of cash usage.

使用現金最多的人群包括低收入家庭和55歲及以上的個人。面對面的購物也是現金使用的主要驅動力。

Dropping the creation of the penny wouldn’t be an entirely new concept, as several other countries have taken similar actions in recent years.

放棄一分錢的創造並不是一個全新的概念，因為近年來其他幾個國家採取了類似的行動。

Canada stopped making its pennies in the early 2010s for the same reasons that the US might part ways with the coin.

加拿大在2010年代初停止了自己的便士，其原因與美國可能與硬幣分開的原因相同。

With the penny out of circulation, purchases in Canada are rounded to the nearest nickel. For instance, if something costs $20.02, it will be rounded down to $20. On the other hand, if something costs $20.03, it will be rounded up to $20.05.

隨著一分錢的流通，在加拿大的購買被四捨五入到最近的鎳。例如，如果某事的價格為20.02美元，它將被舍入至20美元。另一方面，如果價格的價格為20.03美元，它將被四捨五入到20.05美元。

The Federal Reserve has also addressed this topic in recent years, stating in a 2022 report that “drastically reducing or ending the production of the penny” could lead to a “significant flow back of coin from consumers and businesses seeking to turn in their pennies.”

美聯儲近年來還談到了這一主題，並在2022年的一份報告中指出，“大幅度降低或結束一分錢的生產”可能會導致“消費者和企業的大量資金恢復，他們尋求扭轉便士。透明

The report also suggested that reducing the production of the penny could save the Mint about $100 million annually.

該報告還建議，減少一分錢的生產可以每年節省造幣廠約1億美元。

Despite the concerns, deciding to eliminate the penny wouldn’t be as simple as Musk asking President Trump to do so, as the Constitution gives powers to regulate the Federal Reserve to Congress.

儘管有擔憂，但決定消除一分錢並不像馬斯克要求特朗普總統這樣做的簡單，因為憲法賦予了向國會規范美聯儲的權力。

While Republicans do have control in Congress, DOGE is already facing legal troubles, with lawsuits filed challenging Trump’s ability to create the entity, which is separate from the US government but serves as an auditor.

儘管共和黨人確實在國會有控制權，但杜格已經面臨法律麻煩，訴訟提出了挑戰特朗普建立實體的能力，該實體與美國政府不同，但作為審計師。