Get rid of pennies

Resolved: The US government should stop minting the Jefferson nickel and assign the Lincoln penny a five cent value in its place.

Due to the rising, and risen, costs of metal, minting change is more expensive than ever. A Jefferson nickel costs almost 8 cents to mint and the Lincoln penny about 1.25 cents.

Normally, the government makes profit by minting money (seigniorage), paying production cost and recieving face value. But, in the case of nickels and pennies, the government lost almost $100 million dollars alone in 2007.

So, a simple remedy is to stop minting the Jefferson nickel, and make the Lincoln penny worth five cents. This not only saves the 3 cent and .25 cent loss for every nickel and penny minted, but creates a profit gap where the new Lincoln nickel makes the government 3.75 cents per coin.

This begs the question, how would we handle cash transactions without a cent piece for precise change? Following other countries like Australia, we would instiute a rounding system, where cash transactions are rounded to the nearest 5 cents. (1, 2, 6, & 7 round down; 3, 4, 8 & 9 up).

So, not only would the American taxpayers save hundreds of millions of dollars, we wouldn't have to deal with those one cent nuisances anymore.

Roadmap- I will go over the benefits of the penny then refute my opponents arguments.

C1) While individually pennies are not worth much, over time they add up.

A) In 2002, Gallup polling found that 58 percent of Americans stash pennies in piggy banks, jars, drawers and the like, instead of spending them like other coins. Some people eventually redeem them at banks or coin-counting machines! So many Americans actually do use the penny.

B) Furthermore, the penny is used to raise money by charity organizations. People who would not be willing to part with a larger bill are often willing to give up Pennies. The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has raised 150 million dollars through its "Pennies for Patients" program over 15 years. Without the penny, this cancer research would not have been possible.

C2) Pennies help fight inflation

"We think the penny is important as a hedge to inflation," says director Mark Weller of Americans for Common Cents. "Any time you have more accurate pricing, consumers benefit." Small business owners and small purchases rely on the penny. Loss of the penny will create inflation and price instability.

http://www.offthekuff.com...

C3) The rise of credit cards defeats the purpose of rounding coins.

The common complaint about pennies is that they are inefficient to use. Credit cards however operate by computer. They can handle as many digits as needed. As credit cards become more common, pennies will be used less. So these disadvantages become less noticeable.

Onto my opponents case

"But, in the case of nickels and pennies, the government lost almost $100 million dollars alone in 2007."

First, I would like to point out my opponent provided no sources for this claim(or any claim he makes). The argument should be discredited on that basis alone.

Second, the federal government has a budget of three trillion a year. 100 Million dollars would be .0003 percent of the yearly budget. This would have a virtually unnoticeable effect on the budget (It would save everyone money in the pennies, which as my opponent has abolished would result in no benefit for most tax payers). This is significantly outweighed by the extra money a 99 cent purchase would now cost (1 percent).

http://www.wallstats.com...

"So, a simple remedy is to stop minting the Jefferson nickel, and make the Lincoln penny worth five cents"

This part of my opponents case would have a significant negative impact on the economy. Suddenly, every penny a person owns would quintuple in value. The amount of money in the US economy would change. Assuming Congress was even considering passing this bill, there would be a mad dash by consumers to acquire as many pennies as they can. This would create much instability in the market place.

In summary, I provide 3 reasons we should keep the penny in circulation, disprove the only reason my opponent actually gives to abolish the penny(100 million spent) and prove how his implementation would hurt the economy far more than it would help.

my opponent has forfeited the round, so I just extend all my previous arguments.

Well, my opponent seems to have just forfeited the debate. Vote pro because all of my arguments stand.