Penny (Canadian coin)

Penny

Canada
Value	0.01 CAD
Mass	2.35 g
Diameter	19.05 mm
Thickness	1.45 mm
Edge	Smooth
Composition	94% steel 1.5% Ni 4.5% Cu plating
Years of minting	1858–2012
Catalog number	CC 20
Obverse
Design	Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada
Designer	Susanna Blunt
Design date	2003
Design discontinued	2013
Reverse
Design	Maple leaf branch
Designer	G.E. Kruger Gray
Design date	1937
Design discontinued	2013

In Canada, a penny (minted 1858–2012) is an out-of-production and out-of-circulation coin worth one cent, or 1⁄100 of a dollar. The Royal Canadian Mint refers to the coin as the "1-cent coin", but in practice the terms penny and cent predominate.

First minted in 1858, the cent was primarily issued as a bronze or with bronze-plated coin throughout its production. Like all Canadian coins, the obverse depicts the reigning Canadian monarch at the time of issue.

Attempts to abolish the penny began in the late 20th century but were initially met with resistance as they were considered a necessity to pay provincial sales taxes. Money had been lost in penny production since at least the mid-1980s and surveys indicated the coin was falling out of use. Attitudes against the penny grew in the late 2000s decade and, in 2010, the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance recommended the penny be removed from circulation.

Production of the penny ceased in May 2012,^[1] and the Royal Canadian Mint ceased distribution of them on February 4, 2013.^[2] However, the coin remains legal tender.^[3] Nevertheless, once distribution of the coin ceased, vendors were no longer expected to return pennies as change for cash purchases and were encouraged to round purchases to the nearest five cents.^[4] Goods can still be priced in one-cent increments, with non-cash transactions like credit cards being paid to the exact cent.^[5]