A Look at What Killing the Penny Might Mean

President Trump says he has ordered the US Mint to stop making pennies, though it's unclear whether he has the authority to do that. The move has nonetheless renewed an old debate about whether the penny needs to go. Details:

• Congress: Discontinuing the penny would likely take an act of Congress, not an executive order, reports Fast Company. The US Mint, which operates under the Treasury Department, states on its own website that it "derives its authority from the United States Congress" and that Congress authorizes all the coins it makes.

• The cost: Trump called pennies a waste of money, echoing remarks made last month by Elon Musk in his role as a government cost-cutter, notes USA Today. It's an argument long made by some economists, too. (As well as John Oliver.) Last year, the Mint said it cost about 3.7 cents to make a single penny, thanks to the rising price of zinc and copper. The Mint issued 3 billion pennies last year, and the Federal Reserve estimates that 114 billion pennies are in circulation.
• The fallout: CNBC looks at the potential impact on consumers, noting that businesses would have to choose between rounding up or rounding down on small-ticket items. Either way, "that will be the end of $6.99 fast food combo meals," says economics professor David Gulley of Bentley University. Generally, though, any effect on inflation would likely be "minimal," per CNBC.
• Defenders: The advocacy group Americans for Common Cents argues that ditching the penny won't save much money because "many overhead expenses at the Mint would remain and would need to be absorbed by other coins, increasing their per-unit costs," per the New York Times. Among other things, the Mint would likely have to make more nickels, says the group. Plus, penny defenders say the coins have sentimental value given how long they've been around and tossed into fountains and wishing wells. The first penny was issued in 1792, notes Time.
• Watch out, nickel: A William & Mary economics professor tells CNBC that while it takes more than 3 cents to make a penny, it takes 11 cents to make a nickel. "It's the nickel we should worry about," he says.

(More pennies stories.)