An AP national analysis by Hannah Fingerhut found roughly two dozen states had introduced cash-rounding bills in the months after penny production ended, with six states' bills awaiting governor signatures at publication — several were signed within weeks. Common Cents Act sponsor Rep. Lisa McClain warned that federal inaction risks a 'confusing patchwork of state policies,' while Richmond Fed research challenges Treasury's claim that rounding is neutral for consumers.
The Associated Press published a national analysis of the state legislative wave filling the federal void on cash rounding, reporting that roughly two dozen states had introduced rounding bills since penny production ended — with six states' bills awaiting governor signatures at publication on March 12, 2026. The snapshot dated quickly: Arizona's governor signed the next day, and Washington, Tennessee, Idaho, and others followed within weeks.
States Move as Congress Stalls
The AP's review found state lawmakers acting on a shared problem: with the federal Common Cents Act (H.R. 3074) stuck awaiting a House floor vote after clearing the House Financial Services Committee, businesses faced legal uncertainty about whether rounding cash transactions could violate consumer-protection or pricing laws. Most state bills follow the same template — voluntary, symmetrical rounding of cash totals to the nearest nickel, with taxes calculated on the pre-rounded amount.
McClain: Federal Bill Needed to Prevent Patchwork
Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.), the House sponsor of the Common Cents Act, told the AP by email that federal legislation remains necessary precisely because of the state activity it described:
A federal standard would prevent "a confusing patchwork of state policies."
The bill would set symmetrical rounding rules nationwide, but still requires House floor action and Senate passage.
Is Rounding Really Neutral? The Fed vs. Treasury
The article contrasts two views of rounding's consumer impact:
- The U.S. Treasury maintains that totals round down as often as up, producing "no overall effect on consumer prices"
- Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond researchers found that cash transaction totals disproportionately end in digits that round up (8s and 9s appear more often than chance), meaning consumers collectively could lose millions of dollars a year to upward rounding — a few cents at a time
Why It Matters
The AP analysis is the definitive wire-service snapshot of the spring 2026 legislative rush — the moment state rounding laws shifted from novelty to norm. By June 2026, most of the bills it tracked as pending had become law, validating its core finding that states were not waiting for Washington.