Coin Proposed to Replace $1 Bill

Legislation introduced Tuesday in the Senate would replace the dollar bill with a coin bearing the likeness of Christopher Columbus. Sponsors of the bill said the move would save millions of dollars a year in printing costs.

The new coin would be similar to the Susan B. Anthony dollar of the 1970s. That coin was unpopular because of its resemblance to the quarter, and the Treasury stopped minting it, but officials said the Columbus coin would be more distinct from a quarter because of its gold tint and smooth edges.

Sen. Dennis DeConcini (D-Ariz.), a sponsor of the Senate bill, said that a Columbus dollar would last 20 years, compared to the 18-month average life of a greenback, which he called a “budget buster.”

He estimated the savings at $117 million a year after the paper dollar is phased out, but other sponsors and coin experts said the annual savings would be about $50 million.

About 3.8 billion dollar bills are in circulation. It costs an estimated 2.6 cents to make a dollar bill, and 3.5 cents to mint one of the coins.

Supporters of the coin said it would not be rejected as the Anthony dollar was, because it would be a replacement rather than an alternative to the dollar bill.

They also said that it would save consumers money by eliminating the need for change machines, and that existing coin-operated machines would not have to be altered to accept dollar bills.

Considering that the nation faces more important issues, the legislation’s backers said they were uncertain how much support it would get.

“It’ll either catch on and it will be the end of the dollar bill, or we won’t get the bill passed,” said Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.), one of the bill’s sponsors.