Dollar Coin Would Carry Big Bill

People at the U.S. Mint don’t want to change to a dollar coin, because, they say, the switch would carry a big bill.

After months of taking a neutral stance, the Mint Friday opposed a congressional plan to stop printing new paper dollars, phase out the old ones and replace them with gold-tinted dollar coins.

Using dollar coins would save a cool $400 million to $800 million a year, lawmakers say.

Wrong, says the Mint. That’s a specious argument because the savings would occur decades from now, not in the next few years. The Congressional Budget Office puts the savings at $100 million over the next five years, or $20 million annually.

What’s more, American consumers and businesses have shown little interest in earlier dollar coins, the Mint says.