Several associations representing retailers and financial institutions are calling on the U.S. Treasury Department to help raise awareness about the need for increased coin circulation.
In a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the group, consisting of FMI – the Food Industry Association, the American Bankers Association, the National Grocers Association, and the Retail Industry Leaders Association, among others – asked the agency to help with public awareness efforts to “get coin moving,” the coin circulation campaign created by the U.S. Coin Task Force.
Emphasizing that the U.S. Mint does not have the capacity to produce enough new coins to make up for the circulation slowdown, the letter noted the harm that a continued lack of coin would have on retail customers that cannot pay for purchases through credit and debit cards.
“The consequences of a coin circulation slowdown fall hardest on consumers that do not have the ability to pay electronically. If retailers are not able to offer change for cash purchases, consumers who rely on cash will be vulnerable,” the group said in its letter.
The country continues to face coin circulation challenges compounded by the shift in consumer spending habits due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Cash-reliant retailers, like grocery stores, are struggling to access enough coin to support everyday cash transactions, the group said, because much of the $48.5 billion in coin already in circulation is sitting dormant inside American homes.
“For the food industry, this coin supply disruption affects a grocer’s ability to complete cash transactions because they lack sufficient coin to make change at check out. This significantly limits the ability of millions of cash-reliant and cash-preferring grocery customers to buy necessary goods and services,” said Christine Pollack, vice president, government relations, FMI, and a U.S. Coin Task Force member.
The group asked the Treasury Department to use its influence to bring awareness to the issue again.
“We ask that you and the Department of the Treasury use your platform and your voice to raise public awareness of this coin circulation slowdown and the need to get coin moving in the economy,” the letter said. “By amplifying the (task force’s) messaging through your public engagements and Treasury’s many communication channels, you can help the most coin-dependent of consumers and the financial institutions and retailers that serve them. Treasury-developed Public Service Announcements, for example, would be an effective tool to help influence consumer behavior.”