OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn has joined four other senators in promoting the replacement of $1 bills with $1 coins.
Coburn joined fellow Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Democrats Tom Harkin of Iowa and Mark Udall of Colorado in introducing legislation to promote the $1 coin as a way to save money and reduce the federal deficit.
Coburn says the change should be a "no-brainer." He points to a Government Accountability Office study that has estimated the savings of moving from paper to coin at between $200 million and $500 million a year.
Supporters of the change say the $1 coin is also environmentally friendly because the coin will last an estimated 30 years while a $1 bill lasts about three years.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.