But after the war we returned to the prior composition. That lasted until 1982 when, due to the rising prices of copper, the content of the penny was changed to 97.5% zinc and only 2.5% copper.
And today, there are more than 150 billion pennies in circulation.
Now there are plans to mint and release a new Lincoln penny in 2009 in honor of Lincoln’s 200th birthday. If these plans are carried out, Lincoln’s portrait will still grace the front of the coin, but the back will depict a scene from his earlier life, such as Lincoln speaking before the Illinois legislature.
But let’s focus on the question of whether it is really in our interest to continue to produce and circulate the penny.
Of course, the penny is a part of our history and our legacy. For example, frequently included in our daily lives is the comment “A penny for your thoughts,” and also Ben Franklin’s oft-quoted phrase “A penny saved is a penny earned.” But is that enough when considering the following economic realities?
Today, it costs the taxpayers about 1.67 cents for each penny produced. So, since the U.S. Mint produces about 7 billion pennies every year, we are paying more than $115 million every year just for this to be done. And how much of an undertaking it is to produce even 1 billion pennies?
Well, think of it this way. If 1 billion pennies were packed together, they would be almost the same size as five 41-foot-long school buses, and if placed on top of each other they would rise almost 1,000 miles into the air.
And how high is that? Well, to give you some perspective, the space shuttle orbits about only 225 miles above the earth. And we produce seven times those numbers every year.
