MONTGOMERY — Legislation that would allow businesses to round cash transactions at Alabama businesses to the nearest five cents passed the Senate on Thursday.
The bill by State Rep. Norman Crow (R-Tuscaloosa) would authorize the rounding of the total amount of any in-person cash transaction to the nearest five cents.
Under the bill, if the final digit of the transaction amount is 1 or 2, the total may be rounded down to 0. If the final digit is 3 or 4, it can be rounded up to 5. If the final digit is 6 or 7, it can be rounded down to 5. If the final digit is 8 or 9, it can be rounded up to 0.
Although pennies are still in circulation, the U.S. Mint ceased production of pennies in November.
“Our retail outlets in the state were having trouble making change. It basically puts a standard out there and says, ‘This is what is a good practice to do this.’ I heard from a lot of constituents and a lot of business owners who were really having trouble if you were operating in cash, just making change,” Crow told 1819 News on Tuesday.
The bill passed the House in March. It now heads to Gov. Kay Ivey’s desk for her consideration.
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