TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A new bill filed in Florida earlier this month tells businesses what to do if they run out of pennies.
That bill — HB 951 — was filed by state Rep. Fiona McFarland (R-Sarasota) and Rep. Tobin Overdorf (R-Palm City), and it gives a contingency plan for how these businesses should operate in the Sunshine State.
More specifically, HB 951 applies only if businesses can’t get hold of pennies due to 1-cent coins no longer being produced.
Those concerns may be well-founded, as President Donald Trump announced early last year that he ordered production on the 1-cent coin to end due to their costs.
[BELOW: US Mint presses final pennies as production ends after more than 230 years]
If this leaves businesses without pennies, then HB 951 requires businesses to round in-person cash transactions as follows:
- If the final digit ends in 1 or 2 cents? Round to 0 cents.
- If the final digit ends in 3, 4, 6, or 7 cents? Round to 5 cents.
- If the final digit ends in 8 or 9 cents? Round to 10 cents.
However, rounding to the nearest nickel doesn’t change how much tax is due during the transaction, as tax must be calculated before the rounding.
Right now, HB 951 must pass through three committees if it wants a chance to become law. Its first hearing is slated on Feb. 2 before the Ways & Means Committee.
But if the bill manages to clear all of its hurdles and get passed into law, it will take effect immediately upon receiving the governor’s signature.