BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The federal government has stopped printing pennies, and the change could impact how businesses in Kern County handle transactions.
At Happy Jack's Pie N' Burger, a cash-only favorite in Bakersfield, owners ditched smaller coins, like pennies, decades ago. Not because they had a crystal ball, or some auspicious writing on the wall, but rather to simplify the payment process for customers and staff.
"A lot easier, because when this place was booming, and the girls were trying add the sales tax to figure it out and add it on, it was becoming a problem," Ruben Rosales said.
Elsewhere, if you're paying with cash, the change you get back may be rounded up or down because businesses don't have pennies. According to State Treasurer Fiona Ma, there's legislation in the works that will outline how businesses are required to round up or down change given back to consumers.
"If you are paying by cash and the penny is not available, then do businesses round up or round down? That's going to be the question. There is legislation right now pending by Senator Caballero that is going to clarify, similar to Canada, when Canada discontinued its pennies, it passed a law that said that they would round up to the nearest five cents," Ma said.
But what if you're paying with a card? Ma says as long as the penny is still around, companies can use it to price their goods and services.
"I think the younger generation is already used to not carrying coins around, and however, if you are paying electronically, those prices are still, they still have the ability to, you know, to price to the penny. It's just if you're a cash business, and later on, the pennies may not be available. That's when we're going to have to round," Ma said.
If you have pennies, they are still valid and you can spend them just about anywhere. However, you're more than likely not going to see them given back as change.
"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere:
