Whose to profit?

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It seems to me that if there's money to be made from melting copper coins, that money should benefit the taxpayer, not "an Ohio company". The Mints must be perfectly capable of melting them and using them for the copper plating of any new coins.

Peter

Plan to melt pennies fails to solidify - Whatever Happened to . . . ?"
Sabrina Eaton, Monday, August 11, 2008

What happened to an Ohio company's plans to melt old pennies and extract their copper?

The company that wanted a legislative change that would let it melt the coins isn't banking on getting its way anytime soon.

Jackson Metals, which is south of Columbus in Jackson County, had hoped to melt down pennies minted before 1982, whose components are now worth 1.7 cents per coin, and sell the copper to makers of brass products such as doorknobs and plumbing fixtures. The company's plans are blocked by a U.S. Mint ban on melting pennies, a rule designed to prevent coin shortages.

U.S. Rep. Zack Space, a Democrat of Dover, tried to help his constituent firm with legislation to legalize penny melting and have the Mint make new pennies from cheaper metal.

In May, the House of Representatives signed off on Space's plan to make pennies from copper-plated steel at a cost of 0.7 cents each, compared with the 1.67 cents that it currently costs to make a penny. But the controversial melting provision was ditched.

"The legislation doesn't have much effect on our business, but it is good that the Mint would be allowed to produce pennies that cost less than a cent to produce," said Jackson Metals President Walter Luhrman.

Space predicts that altering the metal composition of pennies will save taxpayers $1 billion over 10 years, and he says he hopes that allowing the Mint to produce less-expensive replacement coins would encourage it to end the melting ban.

But the measure still needs to pass the Senate to become law, and time is running short before Congress adjourns for the year. The proposal is still being reviewed by the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.

Source: Plain dealer, Cleveland