Should America Get Rid of the $1 Bill?

According to the latest report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), phasing out the iconic one dollar bill and replacing it with coins will save the taxpayer $4.4 billion over 30 years, due to the latter's superior durability (coins last 30 years, whereas bills are typically good for 5 years). While the dollar coin has been in mint production since 1794, it has never quite caught on with the American public, forcing the Federal Reserve, which holds 1.4 billion of the 2.4 billion coins currently in circulation, to suspend its production last year. The GAO report came as the Congress began seeking ways to save money on minting at a House subcommittee hearing earlier on Thursday.