Legislation to change the metallic composition of the penny and nickel to a less expensive copper-colored steel passed in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 8, 2008.

However, the plunge in base metal prices since could very well end the legislation’s chances of moving forward in the Senate.

The goal of the bill, which it titled Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2008 - H.R. 5512, was directed toward saving money after high copper prices pushed production costs of the penny up to about 1.26 cents and the nickel to about 7.7 cents.

Since May, copper prices have fallen to where the melt value of a penny is now under a half cent and the nickel is just slightly higher than 5 cents — the U.S. Mint now makes money issuing pennies and almost breaks even with nickels.

Read the rest of this entry »

The House debated on the legislation and finally voted yesterday to change the metallic composition of the penny and 5-cent nickel to a less expensive copper-colored steel.

Although the prices of copper, zinc and nickel metals in coins have declined in recent months, the penny and 5-cent nickel still cost more to make than what they’re worth—resulting in a reported loss of about $100 million every year, or $1 billion over a decade.

It now costs about 1.26 cents to make the penny and about 7.7 cents to make the nickel.

House bill “H.R. 5512, the Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2008” would seek to change those manufacturing costs by using copper-colored steal, which could cut the cost of making pennies down to about 0.7 cents each. But its recent passage in the House is no guarantee it’ll make its way to the White House for signing.

H.R. 5512 must still go through the Senate and then the President, and not everyone is happy with the current legislation.

Read the rest of this entry »

The debate to change the metal composition of U.S. coinage was waged on the House floor Tuesday.

With the surging prices of metals like zinc and copper, it now costs more than a penny to make a penny and about 7.7 cents to make a nickel.

A new House bill entitled "H.R. 5512, the Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2008" would seek to change that and it was that bill, which was in debate.

The proposed legislation would give the Treasury Secretary the power to change the composition of coins and use less expensive metals. It also would require the United States Mint to produce steel pennies within six months of the bill’s enactment.

Read the rest of this entry »

The cost to manufacture pennies and nickels exceeds their face value. A newly introduced House bill would change the metal composition in coins to make them profitable again.

The newly introduced bill is not a new concept. A similar bill received attention late last year. The ‘Coin Modernization and Taxpayer Savings Act of 2007‘ failed to get through the gates when a mini firestorm erupted. Mostly because the bill contained more than what its name implied - a provision that would allow citizens to melt pennies.

That portion of the bill proved to be controversial. Why? The U.S. Treasury implemented a ban on melting 1-cent and 5-cent coins that went into effect just months earlier with a stated objective to save money.

Read the rest of this entry »

Chinese archaeologists have raised an 800 year-old merchant ship built during the Song dynasty (960-1279). It’s dubbed the "Titanic of China" and before sinking, it was hauling a treasure trove of porcelain, gold, jewels and other artifacts, including 6,000 coins.

The treasure ship, officially labeled Nanhai No. 1, or “South China Sea No. 1,” was discovered 82 ft (25m) below water in a bed of mud. That mud helped to preserve the ancient ship and its contents for all these years.

Thousands of artifacts have been recovered and the remarkable next phase has already occurred - the Nanhai 1 was lifted from the sea floor and loaded onto a cargo ship.

Read the rest of this entry »

In a blaze of actions and to get home for the holidays, the Senate and House tossed together a several hundred page bill named, The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008. The bill has been given to the President and while there’s no guarantee, the signing of it seems likely.

(Editor’s update: President Bush signed the act into law Dec. 26.)

Even with the latest and greatest computer, the digital document takes seconds to load. Reading it in its entirety… well, that’s hours of tedium. Thanks to modern search tools, quicker inspection is possible. And upon review, the bill contains a few nuggets of interest for coin collectors.

Read the rest of this entry »

Packing coins into house walls apparently was an "in" thing during times of old.

Earlier this month there was the account of ancient roman coins found within a blacksmith’s wall in Portugal. Now, there’s another case of rare coins found in an old home and wall in Pennsylvania.

This latest batch of coins are not as old. But, ranging from the 1820’s to 1960’s, they’re not exactly youthful either.

The Tribune-Democrat reports how an old abandoned home was searched, at the behest of the family members who owned it, by Jeff Bidelman. Bidelman is the owner of Rare Collectibles in Johnstown, PA.

Read the rest of this entry »