4 VYOUurF as, D> < . } om. 5 ma Saving The DollarBill (NAPSA)—An increasing number of Americans have found a new way to save a dollar—or, at any rate, to save the dollarbill. At Issue That’s because they’re asking legislators to oppose the effort to take the dollar bill out of circulation and replace it with a dollar coin. The dollar bill’s supporters say such a switch would not only elimi- nate an American icon, it would cost businesses money. According to the experts at the economics research firm John Dunham & Associates, getting rid of the dollar bill would cost businesses about $200 million a year and lead to more than 4,000 job losses—and that doesn’t even include additional capital expenses such as new cash registers, change-counting machines, cash drawers, larger safes and so on. There will also be costs to banks, money transfer companies and other financialfirms. The Expert’s Opinion “Essentially, this would be a tax increase on businesses from coast to coast,” explained John Dunham. “Americans are already struggling with a poor economy, and forcibly removing the dollar bill from circulation for a dollar coin will only exacerbate these problems for business owners.” The Government Report A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report appears to agree. It indicates “the cost of producing coins for a full replacement is never fully recovered during the 30-year analysis.” Even without considering the cost of producing, transferring, distributing, storing and managing dollar coins, the GAO estimate showsthat the dollar coin would actually be a net Does the buck stop here? Most Americans opposethe effort to take the dollar bill out of circulation and replace it with a dollar coin. cost to the governmentfor at least the first 10 years. The People’s Preference The potential switch is also unpopular. According to a study by Luntz Global, 97 percent of Americans believe the dollar bill is more convenient than the dollar coin. What Some People Are Doing Americans for George—a group of like-minded individuals, businesses and organizations seeking to ensure that the citizens of the United States maintain the ability to choose their preferred currency—has a number of ideas about how to save the dollar bill. What You Can Do To get more facts, sign a peti- tion or learn about additional steps you can take, visit www.AmericansforGeorge.org.
