I thought they were considering removing the penny from general circulation

no? just a rumor?

I haven't taken the time to look, but as I've been hearing about the pending penny-removal since I was eight years old, and always as a spoken word notion from friends and family members, I'm inclined to treat it as an urban legend until further notice.

Snopes' take on the cost of penny production.

There has been talk of it, but mostly just speculation and support one way or the other (some links here).

The GAO did some research on the subject and you can review the 24-page PDF version of the report here.

There have been various movements to eliminate the penny. It comes from the same general movement to get us converted to coins for small dollar denominations.

It has never made it very far, though it is a proposal I'd generally support. The general response is that the ability to charge (and pay) to the cent (as opposed to the nickel) is a god-given right.

The world did not end, however, when the halfpenny was taken out of circulation in the 1850s.

I really like the idea of a $1 coin (and no bill) and $2 bill.

I do not. If you've spent any time in Europe, all it means is that you are constantly carrying several kilos worth of change at any one time. It gets annoying.

I've spent time in Europe. I liked it and did not find myself carrying more change. In fact I was much more likely to actually spend the change I was carrying anyway (here I just grap the paper, there I was looking for the 1 euro coin so I might as well use the 20 cent coin too).

I came to my opinion after spending time in Canada experiencing this. The only reason one would need a pocket full of change is if you have too many $1 coins. Since there is a $2 bill, theory holds that the most of the $1 coin one would need is 1, maybe a couple of them if you anticipate needing them for tips.

MUCH preferred the $1 coin/$2 bill combination.