Shopping publication PennySaver has launched a consumer poll to find out if Americans really agree that the one-cent coin should be abolished.
The poll is part of a “Save the Penny” campaign that kicked off yesterday in both the print PennySaver editions and at the PennySaverUSA.com Web site.
“Recent opinions in the United States in favor of the penny’s elimination, we believe, discount its economic impact,” said Loren Dalton, president of PennySaverUSA.com and a corporate officer of Harte-Hanks Inc., which owns both the PennySaver publications and the Web site. “We believe most Americans agree with Benjamin Franklin when he said, ‘A penny saved is a penny earned.’ Our poll will help determine if today’s respondents feel the same as we do.”
Legislation introduced in Congress last month by Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) would abolish the penny as “a nuisance” and “government waste at its worst”, now that the cost of manufacturing the coin exceeds its face value. Among other steps, Kolbe’s law would round out most transactions to reduce the need for pennies.
The poll will be live on the PennySaverUSA Web site through September 30, 2006, with promotions in print and through radio spots in selected markets. The company says final results of the poll may be forwarded to Congressional representatives.
