Geezers among us will recall the ubiquitous use of the United States penny in vending machines for candy and gum as well as in parking meters and other devices. Today, however, that has all changed. A nickel today is worth less than a penny was in 1972. It costs 1.7 cents to mint every penny--even when considering the fact that they have been made primarily out of zinc since 1982 (specifically, they now consist of a zinc core with a thin outer shell of copper for a total composition of 97.5% zinc and 2.5% copper). Gumball machines and the like are now fueled by higher-denomination coins.
According to the infamous 2001 "penny episode" of the West Wing TV series (a brief excerpt can be found here), the only vending machines which still accept pennies are toll booths in Illinois. The episode further claimed that Illinois politicians were successfully blocking any and all attempts to eliminate the penny from circulation out of respect for the individual pictured thereon (who, incidentally, was born and raised in Kentucky and Indiana--not Illinois).
Any truth to the West Wing assertions? Actually, yes, at least to the one about the toll booths. Toll booths in Illinois still accept pennies. In fact, in 2001, they were taking in 800,000 of them a DAY. Presumably, this rate has probably gone down in light of the fact that many toll transactions are now completed through electronic devices and not paid by cash, but the one-cent pieces are still acceptable as toll payments in Illinois where coin-activated machines are used.
Whether or not Illinois representatives are the ones opposed to eliminating the penny, at least currently, is not nearly as well-documented. In fact, the highest-ranking politician currently hailing from Illinois, Barack Obama, indicated in 2013 that he would be fine with getting rid of the coin.
And remember, even though a penny is virtually worthless, you can still get in deep trouble if you transport more than 500 of them out of the USA.
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