It looks like the Lincoln head cent, commonly known by Americans as the “penny,” really is doomed. On February 9, 2025, U.S. President Donald J. Trump said he is directing the United States Treasury to stop ordering new one-cent coins from the United States Mint due to the high and rising cost of making the copper-plated zinc coin. “For far too long the United States has minted pennies, which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful,” he posted on Truth Social, his social media platform. He added, “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”
President Trump’s post correctly states that it costs more than double the cent’s face value to strike and distribute the coin. The rising cost for producing one-cent coins triggered the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to target the Lincoln cent for budget cuts.
Universal Coin & Bullion President Michael Fuljenz called for the end of the Lincoln cent in his February/March 2025 COINage column and cover feature, “Do Pennies Make Sense?” The COINage issue was in print before the presidential announcement. In the “Market Report” column, Fuljenz cited the rapidly increasing cost of the Lincoln cent and the zinc lobbyists who have long pressured lawmakers into keeping the coin around. Fuljenz wrote, “I hope that the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under President Donald Trump will be able to ignore the lobbyists and work directly with Congress to win the fight to abolish the penny.”
What this news means for the U.S. economy or American coin collectors remains to be seen. However, it is most likely that without new one-cent coins being struck for circulation all cash transactions in the U.S. will be rounded up or down to the nearest nickel, as Canada has done for more than a decade since eliminating its one-cent coin from production; electronic transactions may still be completed to the cent. Collectors may also soon see fewer and fewer pennies in circulation as more Americans hoard the coin thinking the cent could become rare and valuable.
There is no information right now about the United States Mint still striking one-cent coins for collectors, such as for inclusion in annual uncirculated and proof sets. Under certain conditions, the cents in those sets could be valuable.
Meanwhile, attentions turn to the nickel, a coin with a five-cent face value that costs around 14 cents to manufacture. If one-cent coins disappear from the circulation, the U.S. Mint may be ordered to strike more nickels to fill the need for small change in circulation, which could compound the efforts to reduce government spending. Ultimately, the goals of DOGE and those in government who wish to trim the U.S. budget could spell an eventual end for the increasingly costly nickel. This might leave the dime—which currently costs just less than six cents to produce—as the lowest-value circulating coin in the years ahead.
“On February 9, 2025, U.S. President Donald J. Trump said he is directing the United States Treasury to stop ordering new one-cent coins from the United States Mint due to the high and rising cost of making the copper-plated zinc coin.”
President Trump Inaugural Medal Being Struck by Medalcraft Mint
The Donald J. Trump Presidential Inaugural Committee has tapped Medalcraft Mint of Green Bay, Wisconsin, to produce and distribute the official Donald J. Trump inaugural medal. The medal, which is designed by Medalcraft’s engraving team, is inspired by a similar jugate profile of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Vice President Richard M. Nixon as seen on the 1957 inaugural medal.
In addition to the central obverse device depicting Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, the 2025 inaugural medal will also feature an inscription encircling the president and vice president declaring: “INAUGURATION * 47th PRESIDENT * JANUARY * 20 * 2025 *” The reverse will feature the inscription “DONALD J./TRUMP” atop “J.D./VANCE.”
Bronze versions are currently slated for sale on the inaugural committee’s website, with possible silver versions of the medal being offered in the future. Two 14-karat gold iterations of the inaugural medal will be presented to Trump and Vance.
Professional Coin Grading Service Launches Revamped Online Coin Submission Portal
Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS.com) makes it easier than ever for customers to utilize services of the most trusted name in the industry. The company recently launched a revamped online coin submission center that offers customers a wealth of tools that make submitting coins for grading faster, easier to understand and more efficient, no matter how big or small the submission.
“The PCGS Online Submission Center 2.0, or OSC 2.0, is a reimagination of the entire coin submission process,” says PCGS President Stephanie Sabin. “It makes submitting coins more convenient while giving you all of the necessary tools and resources to better plan for and organize your submissions to custom tailor the submission experience to your unique needs.”
One of the most innovative new features of PCGS’s new online submission center is an items-first approach. Users can take advantage of new keyword and filter search tools to quickly add all their items at once. The new platform will then provide service-level recommendations based on item details and qualifications, allowing submitters to generate multiple new submissions at one time. The new PCGS My Submissions Dashboard provides users with a place to create, save, name and edit draft submissions with ease.
The new My Submissions Dashboard also auto saves submissions at each step of the process, meaning submitters won’t have to start over each time if they need to take breaks or revisit submission forms later.
“OSC 2.0 is the result of incredible feedback from so many of our customers and the hard work of the PCGS team, which is dedicated to making the submission process as efficient as possible,” Sabin says. “We know this is just the beginning, but we believe this will revolutionize the way the world submits their coins for grading. There’s nothing else out there like it in our hobby. The new PCGS Online Submission Center will make submitting coins for grading easier than ever.”
The new PCGS Online Submission Center is at pcgs.com/submissions.
