Samantha K. Trencs, The End of the Penny: Navigating Rounding Rules and Audit Risks (Tax Notes, April 3, 2026)

Your total is $10.02 at a retail checkout, but as you reach into your pocket, the cashier stops you: There is no need for those 2 cents. This scenario, once the subject of debate and hypothetical guidance, became reality on November 12, 2025, when the U.S. Mint ceased production of the penny.

Producing the penny no longer made economic “cents.” By 2025 the federal government was spending approximately 3.7 cents to manufacture 1 cent of value. When Congress removed the rounding provisions from the Common Cents Act (H.R. 3074), declining to adopt a national rounding standard, the result was not uniformity, but a patchwork of state rules and guidance.

This new retail environment may demand a forensic approach to compliance. Misalignment between point-of-sale (POS) logic and evolving state guidance can result in unintentional under-remittance, overcollection, and significant audit and litigation exposure….