Enzi & McCain Reintroduce the Coins Act

Press Release – U.S. Senators Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., and John McCain, R-Ariz., today reintroduced the Currency Optimization, Innovation, and National Savings Act of 2017 (COINS Act), legislation that would modernize our currency by moving to a $1 dollar coin, reduce the cost of nickel production and suspend the minting of the penny, which currently costs more than one cent to produce. These money-saving reforms, which have been studied and supported by the non-partisan Government Accountability Office, could generate up to $16 billion in taxpayer savings.

“Change can be hard sometimes, but switching to a dollar coin could save our country $150 million a year,” said Senator Enzi. “Our country is in a difficult financial position because we didn’t value the cost of the dollars we spent. We can’t afford to keep that up, and these innovative opportunities are a way to save taxpayer money that is really just being wasted with each new dollar we print and penny we mint.”

“With our country facing $20 trillion in debt, Congress must act to protect the American taxpayer,” said Senator McCain. “By reforming and modernizing America’s outdated currency system, this commonsense bill would bring about billions in savings without raising taxes.”

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) also endorsed the legislation today:

“It is well-documented that replacing the dollar bill with a dollar coin would save taxpayers billions of dollars, and also be good for consumers, businesses, and the environment,” said CCAGW President Tom Schatz.  “The Council Citizens Against Government Waste has been advocating for the dollar coin for many years and we welcome the introduction of the COINS Act by Senators McCain and Enzi.”