BY BOB HOLT
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
A New Jersey congressman says it’s more trouble to make pennies and nickels than they are worth.
Politifact New Jersey reported that U. S. Representative Steve Rothman said, "Currently it costs more than a penny for the U.S. Mint to make a one cent coin and more than a nickel to make the five cent piece."
The U. S. Mint’s latest report said it cost 1.79 cents to produce and distribute a penny in 2010, and 9.22 cents to make a nickel. The Mint overall lost $42.6 million on over 3.48 billion pennies and 359 million nickels circulated in 2010.
According to wisegeek.com, a penny’s cost is determined by the materials that are used to make them. Pennies contain 97.5 percent zinc, with 2.5 percent copper for their copper color. Prices of these metals have gone up significantly in recent years.
