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State lawmakers rush to set rounding rules for when there are no pennies
Florida and Alabama legislatures passed bills to allow rounding cash transactions to the nearest five cents amid a nationwide penny shortage caused by halted production.
- On March 10, 2026, the Florida Legislature passed SB 1074 allowing retailers to round cash transactions to the nearest nickel, approving it 111-1 under Sen. Don Gaetz's sponsorship before sending it to Gov. Ron DeSantis.
- After the federal order in February 2025, President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Department of the Treasury to stop producing pennies, costing 3.7 cents each, while circulating roughly 114 billion existing pennies.
- Under the measure, symmetrical rounding dictates totals ending in 1, 2, 6 or 7 cents round down, while those ending in 3, 4, 8 or 9 cents round up, with examples like $1.92 becoming $1.90 and $1.99 becoming $2.
- Rounding will be optional for retailers and applies only to cash payments, so electronic transactions and card purchases remain unchanged; Rep. Angela Nixon opposed the measure, preferring automatic rounding down to protect cash purchasers.
- At the federal level, lawmakers have proposed the Common Cents Act, with researchers warning that pricing patterns could favor businesses, and the Treasury says stopping penny production saves $56 million annually.
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101 Articles
101 Articles
States rush to set rounding rules for when there are no pennies
Months after the last of the United States’ 1-cent coins were pressed, some states, including Oregon, are beginning to offer their own 2 cents on the penny problem by setting rounding guidance for cash purchases.
·Portland, United States
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources101
Leaning Left16Leaning Right8Center65Last UpdatedBias Distribution73% Center
Bias Distribution
- 73% of the sources are Center
73% Center
L 18%
C 73%
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