Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) has introduced the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings (COINS) Act of 2011 (H.R. 2977).  By phasing out the $1 bill and transitioning to the $1 coin, this legislation will deliver significant savings to both the government and the private sector.

A March 4, 2011 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report concluded that replacing the $1 bill with the $1 coin would save taxpayers an average of $184 million annually and a total of $5.5 billion over the next 30 years. 

Most of the cost savings associated with coins comes from their comparative durability.  Each $1 bill costs 4.2 cents to manufacture and lasts 40 months.  By comparison, the $1 coin costs between 12 and 20 cents to produce but has a lifespan of 30 years or more.

In addition, the $1 coin saves money for the private sector because it is cheaper to handle and process coins than bills.  Mass transit agencies have found that processing $1 coins costs 83 percent less than processing $1 bills.  Vending machine operators have determined that $1 coins save their industry $1 billion a year.  Coins cost 30 cents per thousand pieces to process at Federal Reserve Banks, compared to 75 cents per thousand for $1 bills. 

In its report, GAO observes:  "Over the last 47 years, Australia, Canada, France, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, Spain, and the UK, among others, have replaced lower-denomination notes with coins…Canadian officials later determined that the Canadian government saved $450 million (Canadian) between 1987 and 1991."

With our nation burdened by a $15.2 trillion national debt and private-sector businesses still struggling in the sluggish economy, replacing the $1 bill with the $1 coin is one commonsense proposal that Congress can and should enact immediately.