特朗普总统发誓要削减政府支出，从一分钱开始

去年标志着连续第19财政年度，使便士的单位成本高于其面值。

President Donald Trump has directed the secretary of the treasury to end the production of the penny, a move that would eliminate the one-cent coin from circulation.

唐纳德·特朗普总统已指示财政部长结束一分钱的生产，此举将消除一美分硬币的流通。

The effort to get rid of the penny is not a new one. Former Rep. Jim Kolbe (R–Ariz.) introduced legislation in 2001 and 2006 to eliminate the penny, which ultimately failed to advance. While in office, former President Barack Obama signaled support for the idea, saying in 2013, “Anytime we're spending money on something people don't actually use, that's an example of things we should probably change.”

摆脱一分钱的努力并不是新的。前众议员吉姆·科尔贝（Jim Kolbe）（R – Ariz。）在2001年和2006年提出了立法，以消除一分钱，最终未能晋升。在任职期间，前总统巴拉克·奥巴马（Barack Obama）表示对这一想法的支持，并在2013年说：“每当我们花钱去人们实际使用的东西上，这就是我们应该改变的事情的一个例子。”

While Congress has the power to coin money and regulate its value, eliminating the penny may not require congressional approval. According to the U.S. Code, the secretary of the treasury has the authority to mint coins in the amounts he deems necessary to meet the nation's needs. Tribe argues that if the secretary decides that no pennies are necessary, he could legally stop minting them altogether.

尽管国会有权赚钱并规范其价值，但消除便士可能不需要国会批准。根据《美国法典》，财政部长有权以他认为满足国家需求所必需的金额来铸造硬币。部落辩称，如果秘书决定不需要便士，他可以合法地停止完全铸造它们。

If Trump decides to take this route, the penny could be eliminated, although no official plan has been announced. Despite the president's order to halt penny production, the coin is still being made. "The United States Mint administers all coin programs according to legislation enacted by Congress and signed into law by the President," the Mint tells Reason in an email. It "must adhere to legislative specifications on coin subject, design, metal composition and production," the Mint adds.

如果特朗普决定采用这条路线，尽管没有宣布官方计划，但可以消除一分钱。尽管总统命令停止一分钱生产，但仍在制造硬币。造币厂在一封电子邮件中说：“美国根据国会制定的立法并由总统签署的法律管理所有硬币计划。” Mint补充说，它“必须遵守有关硬币主题，设计，金属组成和生产的立法规格”。

If Trump is successful, the U.S. would join New Zealand, Australia, and Canada, all of which eliminated their penny. In the 1990s, both New Zealand and Australia got rid of the pennies due to rising costs and inflation. In Canada, penny production officially ended in 2012, and the Royal Canadian Mint began collecting the coins to extract their metals. At the time, the Canadian government estimated that phasing out the penny would save $11 million Canadian dollars per year (around $10.3 million dollars today).

如果特朗普成功，美国将加入新西兰，澳大利亚和加拿大，所有这些都消除了他们的便士。在1990年代，由于成本和通货膨胀率上升，新西兰和澳大利亚都摆脱了便士。在加拿大，Penny生产于2012年正式结束，加拿大皇家造币厂开始收集硬币以提取金属。当时，加拿大政府估计，淘汰一分钱将每年节省1,100万加元（今天约为1030万美元）。