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 Replies: 49 / Views: 6,441 |
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Valued Member
United States
456 Posts |
I have been participating in an interesting thread on whether the dollar bill should be eliminated and replaced with a dollar and maybe a two dollar coin. In their posts, two members stated that the government has. billions of coins in storage. That is what prompted this new topic.
First, Am I understanding correctly? Are there really billions of coins being stored by the government?
If so, why? And why is the mint continuing to strike billions of coins a year?Didn't we learn anything from the silver dollar about producing enormous amounts of unwanted coins?
Prior to some time in the 1870s, silver coins were hoarded. Circumstances changed, and the previously hoarded silver coins flooded into circulation. By 1879 there simply was no need for additional silver coins until 1891, and production of half dollars was often less than 5,000 annually. (Silver dollars are an exception. But that is a whole other story).
Why doesn't the mint do the same thing now, at least until the stored coins have been released since into circulation?
I would be interested to hear others' thoughts.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2520 Posts |
From what I understand, the dollar coins are only made for collectors (no longer made for circulation) for the last several years. (I have little interest in the series)
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Valued Member
 United States
456 Posts |
Ratman
I was understanding the coins were of multiple denominations. If they are all dollar coins, I have no idea what to do with them.. Currently no one wants them. Is it more economical to store them, dispose of them (landfill, abandoned mine shafts,heck I don't know where, they aren't worth melting) or something else?
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Think of it this way. In a country of 400 million people if everyone had just 5 coins that is already 2 billion coins. Most people have more than 5 coins in a change jar somewhere or the car cup holder. Then think about all the businesses that need to have change drawers filled ect. Billions of coins are there for the most part because they have to be to keep everything properly supplied. Change gets lost, it gets destroyed, collectors take it, roll hunters some times hoard it, they get thrown in fountains ect. A substantial reserve is needed.
As far as dollar coins they'll get used. They get used overseas and to some extent here, they were just over produced at first
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Moderator
United States
187446 Posts |
The billions are dollar coins. Coins are minted to demand. No demand, no minting. The dollar (since 2012) and half dollar (since 2002) are only minted for collectors. They mint billions of cents because the banks demand them. Why? Because they go out to the public and never come back. They end up in change jars, couch cushions, and trash cans.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2520 Posts |
Quote:
They mint billions of cents because the banks demand them. Why? Because they go out to the public and never come back. They end up in change jars, couch cushions, and trash cans. Let's not forget that some simply disintegrate  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
832 Posts |
Here in Boston, we use dollar coins every day of the week - on the MBTA (which is our mass transit system). If you insert a $20 bill into the fare vending machine to pay your fare you'll get one "Charlie Ticket" good for one ride ($2.75 - yikes!) and you'll get 17 dollar coins and one quarter in change. Of course you can pay with crdit or debit (if the machines work) or you can use a smaller denomination, etc etc. But some people (especially tourists) like getting all those dollar coins in change. As you all pointed out, those dollar coins still don't circulate much so the transit systems are one of the best places to find them in public. Some people hoard those dollars coins but I like to spend them. No one blinks an eye around here. And yes, I still get SBAs mixed in with my change on the MBTA. I spend those too.
Also, a lot of shops around here (CVS, Target, etc.) have installed self-checkout lanes and those lanes accept cash and coin... including one cent coins! So it's another way for us to de-hoard our coins with no Coinstar or bank fees. So, if you have buckets of unwanted coins, feel free to send them to me. I use them everyday. Or, come visit Boston where you can spend them everywhere.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3169 Posts |
Billions of uncirculated lol.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2270 Posts |
Coins aren't going into bank vaults and getting lost. Rather the FED keeps a supply on hand to prevent regional and local shortages. If one district has a large surplus they'll ship it to one with a deficit but usually they'll just wait for it to be dispersed. New coin goes to the districts consuming the most coin.
Of course there are non-circulating moderns like halfs and dollars sitting in long term storage but the mint uses FIFO accounting so the first coins in are the first coins distributed even for the non-circulating coins in most instances.
Time don't fly, it bounds and leaps.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
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Here in Boston, we use dollar coins every day of the week - on the MBTA (which is our mass transit system). And that, plus the few other major cities that have large mass transit systems, is why the Fed has a 5 to 6 million coin draw down from stored dollars As I have pointed out before if each HOUSEHOLD, not person, loses, destroys, throws away, or simply tosses THREE coins a WEEK into a change jar, it will consume the entire annual mint production. The mint does not make billions of cents every year because the economy has grown so much that it NEEDS billions more cents, it needs them because the billions they made last year are in hoards or lost and are not in circulation. I just counted the coins in my pocket and there were 34, that is the quota of coins for my household for the next three months. Believe me the government does WANT to have that billion plus dollar coins in storage, they would much rather they be out in the publics hands/hoards because then they could be making more. Making dollar coins for circulation made a couple hundred million dollars in profits for the government each year. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Of course the Mint could simply have them all melted down and start all over again.  |
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Moderator
Australia
16804 Posts |
If the government ever actually does decide to bite the bullet and abolish the one dollar note, they're going to need billions of dollar coins in storage for the changeover.
Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1745 Posts |
8 (including USA) countries use the US dollar as their official currency. My daughter frequents Ecuador and they use the dollar coin, mostly. She says you hardly see dollar bills. Interesting read here: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/na...8837363.html br / |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
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Of course the Mint could simply have them all melted down and start all over again. Problem is if they melted them down they would have to write off something like $800 million in profits. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3467 Posts |
The mint only produces what the law requires. Congress needs to act to limit the waste their acts are producing.
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Moderator
United States
187446 Posts |
Quote:
If the government ever actually does decide to bite the bullet and abolish the one dollar note, they're going to need billions of dollar coins in storage for the changeover.  I think it is inevitable.  |
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Replies: 49 / Views: 6,441 |
Posted 11/23/2018 3:21 pm
