Should the US eliminate pennies, nickels and dimes? The debate has been happening for years. Many people argue for this Store coins At Reasons for economic justice. Others demand to eliminate them because the federal government is losing money by minting low value coins.
One method to settle the controversy is to see if low-value coins are still in use. And there’s an unlikely source of knowledge that shows how much people use pocket money: the Traffic Safety Authority, or TSA. Yes, the identical individuals who screen passengers at airport checkpoints can answer whether people still use coins — and whether that use has trended upward or downward through the years.
Every 12 months the TSA provides an in depth report to the congress shows how much money is left at checkpoints. A decreasing amount of change would indicate that fewer people have coins of their pockets, while a continuing or increasing amount would indicate that individuals are still carrying coins.
The latest TSA number shows that air travelers left nearly $1 million in loose change at checkpoints in 2023. That's about twice as much as in 2012.
At first glance, this implies that more individuals are carrying around and using coins. But when university Researchers Anyone who studies each travel and money use, and is a keen observer of airport checkpoint queuing habits, knows that the story is more complicated than these numbers suggest.
What is left behind?
More than 2 million people fly day by day within the USA, in transit Hundreds of airport checkpoints manned by the TSA. Every flyer that passes through a checkpoint is asked to position items from their pockets akin to wallets, phones, keys and coins either in a trash can or of their carry-on bag. Not everyone thinks to incorporate all of their items on the opposite side of the scanner. Around 90,000 to 100,000 items are left behind every month, the TSA estimates.
For expensive or identifiable items akin to mobile phones, wallets and laptops, the The TSA has a lost and located office Department. The TSA has a special process for coins and occasional paper bills that find yourself within the scanner trays. It collects all the cash, catalogs the quantity and executes it repeatedly deposits it right into a special account that the TSA uses to enhance security operations.
That adds up, as travelers have left nearly $10 million in change over the past 12 years.
The sum of money remaining varies depending on the airport. JFK International Airport in New York City is consistently one among the Top slots for probably the most money lostwith travelers leaving nearly $60,000 behind in 2022. Harry Reid International Airportwhich serves Las Vegas, also sees a big sum of money left behind. Love Field in Dallas, headquarters of Southwest Airlinesis usually at the underside of the list, with only about $100 lost in 2022.
People lose money when going through security for several reasons. First some Keep it short while you get to the airportand of their haste to not miss their plane, they don’t take every part in after the check. Secondly, sometimes The TSA lines are exceptionally long, leaving people struggling to make up time again. Finally, TSA checkpoints are sometimes confusing and noisy places, especially for brand new or infrequent travelers. That makes it much more confusing Some airports have containers with promotingdistracting travelers who just take a fast look to search for all their items.
How much is lost?
The TSA fastidiously tracks how much is lost because that's what the agency does He is allowed to maintain any money left behind that has not been collected at checkpoints. TSA records show people left behind half 1,000,000 dollars in 2012. This number increased to almost a million in 2018. The decline in travel attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the number back to half 1,000,000 in 2020. In 2023, people left behind $956,000.
These raw numbers require two adjustments to accurately track the evolution of lost coins. First, the numbers have to be adjusted for inflation. From 2012 to 2023 is the The consumer price index rose by 33%. That means a dollar of change could buy you a 3rd more in 2012 than it will 12 years later.
Second, the number of individuals flying and going through TSA screening has modified dramatically over time. In 2012, ca 638 million people went through the checkpoints. By 2023, that number had reached 859 million people, which equates to about 1,000 people in airports every 30 seconds across the United States and checkpoints are open.
Adjusting for each inflation and the number of individuals checked shows no change within the sum of money lost. My calculations show that in 2012, about $1.10 in coins were lost for each 1,000 people checked. In 2023, about one penny more, or $1.11, was lost per 1,000.
The peak of monetary losses was in 2020, when $1.80 per 1,000 people remained. This was probably attributable to humans don't wish to touch objects out of unfounded fear of coming into contact with COVID-19. During the pandemic, people generally carried less money.
The world is increasingly use electronic payments. However, TSA checkpoint data clearly shows that individuals are carrying coins at concerning the same rate as they were in 2012. This suggests that Americans are still using physical money, at the least for small payments – and that the urge to make use of pennies Get rid of nickel and dime coins should last some time longer.
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