US $1 Coin, Take 4

[MRT144]

i support reagan on the $1 coin

[Kontiki]

http://www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/golden_dollar_coin/index.cfm?flash=yes&action=sacFAQ

Would the use of the Golden Dollar in lieu of the paper dollar save money and if yes why doesn’t the United States Mint eliminate the paper dollar?

The use of the Golden Dollar coin in lieu of the paper dollar would ultimately save money. The General Accounting Office’s (GAO) stated potential savings of up to $500 million in a report issued September 2002, which was calculated on the premise that the U.S.Government cease production of the paper one-dollar bill. However, the United States Dollar Coin Act of 1997, which authorizes the Golden Dollar, did not call for the elimination of the paper dollar. Consequently, dollar coins and dollar notes co-circulate in the marketplace. The United States Mint does not have the authority to change existing legislation thus, full cost savings cannot be realized.

[MRT144]

why would it save money?

[Dauphin]

A note lasts in circulation about 2 years. A coin lasts in the order of decades but costs twice as much to mint as a note. Therefore the cost to mint is at least a fifth the cost to print, on a replacement basis.

[Arrian]

Hmm... saving money. This appeals to me.

I still hate coins, though.

-Arrian

[Kontiki]

Primarily duration. A US dollar bill has an estimated lifespan of about 21 months before it needs to be replaced. A coin lasts upwards of 30 to 40 years. It's also much harder to counterfeit a coin than a bill, although that's usually not a big problem for small denominations. There are other benefits as well, though I have no idea if they are included in the GAO's estimates (I doubt it). It's much easier to process coinage on the collection end - think of things like road tolls, vending machines, transit fares, etc. All you need to do is ensure that each coin is a diffent size and you can dump huge quantities into electronic sorters to do all the counting and bundling automatically. Similarly efficient technology is not available for paper currency.

[Dauphin]

Another relevent measure though is how much it saves in terms of labour and economy. e.g is it easier for cash based trades to count and deposit notes or coins. Is there a significant saving there, considering notes jam far more than coins.

[KrazyHorse]

I think Kontiki and Dauphin have achieved a trans-Atlantic mind-meld.

[Dauphin]

To play devil's advocate...if it's supposedly so good for the $1 bill, why not the $5 or the $10 or the $20 all the way up? Surely cost savings exist there, why print paper money at all?

[Fake Boris]

As a denomination increases in value, it is less subject to maltreatment and lasts longer...

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
The only way the $1 coin will work is if they put Teh Reagan on it!

Well, he'll be on one of them.

But really, the Dead White Guy obviously missing from our money is Theodore Roosevelt. Washington and Lincoln get a coin and a bill, genocidal maniac Andy Jackson and failed president U.S. Grant are on the money, but T.R. is nowhere to be seen? That's just wrong.

I want a $50 bill with T.R. on the front and a vista of the Grand Canyon (T.R designated the Grand Canyon a national monument).

[Imran Siddiqui]

Oh yeah, Teddy should get a coin. But the rest deserve their honors (Come on, it's Washington and Lincoln... and Andy Jackson, for all his anti-Indian stuff, which was pretty popular at the time, did bring the republic to the common guy including expanding sufferage to all white males; they call it Jacksonian Democracy for a reason... Grant, well it was he who ended up saving the Union as perhaps the first 'modern' general).

[Kontiki]

They should replace all the presidents on currency with American Idol winners.

And you can even throw in Clay Aiken.

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
The only way the $1 coin will work is if they put Teh Reagan on it!

That's right, because no one will collect them.

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by Oncle Boris
As a denomination increases in value, it is less subject to maltreatment and lasts longer...

I've heard somewhere that the $20 dollar note is the most commonly used note (or maybe its the $10), which counters that argument. Even if it wasn't, the longer circulation time is not significantly long to negate the cost saving argument.