House Passes Legislation Providing Clarity on Penny
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously voted in favor of the bipartisan Common Cents Act July 14, addressing the end of penny production and providing clarity for retailers on cash transactions. NATSO encouraged the House to pass the bill prior to the vote and actively engaged in securing clarity for fuel retailers on issues that plagued the industry following the cessation of penny production last year.
Championed by Representatives Lisa McClain (R-MI) and Robert Garcia (D-CA), the Common Cents Act (H.R. 3074) would codify the end of penny production for general circulation and:
- Establish a national framework for cash transaction rounding;
- Provide clarity regarding the treatment of federal, state, and Tribal laws on rounding;
- Require the Federal Reserve Board to develop a strategic plan and periodic reporting on coin terminal operations and the stability of the nation’s coin distribution system.
NATSO will continue to advocate in support of H.R. 3704 as the bill heads to the Senate for consideration.
In advance of the House vote, NATSO praised lawmakers for actively working to resolve an issue that has been negatively impacting businesses and consumers across the country.
Since the U.S. Mint announced that it would stop producing pennies, retailers have struggled to access coins and to price products for cash-paying customers without violating a patchwork of state requirements. An absence of exact change necessitates a uniform set of rules that includes the ability to round prices to the nearest nickel without fear of being in violation of the law.
As pennies disappear from circulation, retailers must round cash transactions to the nearest five cents when exact change is unavailable. Yet many states and local jurisdictions have complex or conflicting rounding rules. Rounding the price of food purchased under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) risks a violation of SNAP regulations, which prohibit treating SNAP customers more or less favorably than other customers. Retailers that facilitate check cashing, including pay checks, also struggle to accommodate check cashing requests in absence of exact cash amounts.
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