国会成员们已纷纷离京，直到11月3日选民对由共和党掌控的立法机构作出评判后才会返回。
Congress has officially skipped town until after voters cast judgement on the GOP-controlled legislative branch on Nov. 3.
不过，在一系列备受瞩目的——有时也以失败告终的——关于数据中心及大学体育相关法案的投票间隙，议员们还是完成了一项鲜为人知的成就：他们以跨党派合作的方式着手整治政府资源浪费现象。此举也改变了民众使用现金支付的方式。
Lawmakers, however, did pull off an achievement that flew under the radar, sandwiched between higher-profile — and sometimes failed — votes on bills concerning data centers and college sports: They tackled government waste on a bipartisan basis. And in doing so, they changed how you’re paying with cash.
近20年来，制造一枚一分钱硬币的成本始终高于其面值。2024年，生产一枚一分钱硬币的成本高达3.7美分。
For nearly 20 years, the expense of creating a penny has exceeded its face value. In 2024, a penny cost 3.7 cents to produce.
本周一，参议院通过了《普通分币法案》，该法案将正式终止已持续232年之久的一分钱硬币生产。该法案两周前已在众议院获得通过，如今将呈交特朗普签署。
On Monday, the Senate passed the Common Cents Act which will formally end penny production after a 232-year run The bill now goes to Trump for his signature, having passed the House two weeks earlier.
根据特朗普的指示，美国财政部已于去年停止一分钱硬币的生产，并于11月完成了最后一批该类硬币的制造。这项法案则进一步确立了财政部的相关举措。美国铸币局预计，停止生产一分钱硬币每年可为政府节省5600万美元。加拿大、澳大利亚及新西兰等国多年前便已不再发行低面额硬币。
The Treasury Department had already stopped penny production last year under Trump’s directives and produced the last batch of the one-cent coins in November. But this bill cements the changes underway at the Treasury. The U.S. Mint estimates calling it quits with the penny will save the government $56 million annually. Countries such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand scrapped low-denomination coins years ago.
长期以来，一分钱硬币一直是联邦预算的负担。近20年来，其生产成本始终高于面值；2024年时，制造一枚一分钱硬币的成本为3.7美分。早在上世纪90年代，立法机构便开始尝试废止该硬币的使用，前总统巴拉克·奥巴马曾将这一举措的失败称为“反映我国诸多深层次问题的一个典型例子”。至于目前市面上仍流通的超过1140亿枚一分钱硬币，它们仍将具备法定货币地位，民众也可继续把它们存放在存钱罐里、沙发垫下或其他难以被发现的角落，使其不再进入流通环节。
Pennies have long been a drag on the federal budget. For nearly 20 years, the expense of creating a penny has exceeded its face value In 2024, a penny cost 3.7 cents to produce. Legislative attempts to kill the penny date back to the 1990s and former President Barack Obama once called the failure to do so“a good metaphor for some of the larger problems that we’ve got.”Midterms ‘going to be an absolutely brutal political nightmare’ for Republicans: GOP strategist October 2, 2026 As for the more than 114 billion pennies still in existence, they will retain their status as legal tender, and Americans can continue throwing them in coin jars, under sofa cushions or other desolate places that remove them from circulation.
如今，许多美国人不再使用现金，而是选择电子支付，零售商因此越来越频繁地抱怨一美分硬币短缺。有些州已经允许在无法准确找零时，将现金交易金额取整至最接近的五美分硬币，但各州规定并不一致。该法案试图通过建立统一的联邦框架解决这一问题，并取代彼此冲突的州法律。
With many Americans shunning cash in favor of paying electronically, retailers have increasingly complained about a penny shortage. Some states already permit rounding cash transactions to the nearest nickel when exact change isn’t possible, but the rules vary from state to state. This bill attempts to fix that with a federal framework that will supersede the conflicting state laws.
对于第119届国会而言，这是立法部门难得一次按照预期方式发挥作用的例子。
For the 119th Congress, this serves as an all-too-rare instance of the legislative branch functioning as intended.
除了为一美分硬币举行“葬礼”外，该法案还可能让五美分硬币在外观上焕然一新。2025财年，铸造一枚五美分硬币的成本为13美分——这是政府臃肿浪费的又一例证。如今，一美分硬币正像软盘和黑莓手机一样逐渐沦为过时遗物，这类问题也将受到更多关注。该法案授权财政部测试更廉价的材料，以重新制作五美分硬币。不过，特朗普不能像处理一美分硬币那样，一时兴起就干脆取消五美分硬币。该法案规定，如果财政部试图逐步淘汰其他硬币，例如五美分硬币，就必须通知国会。
In addition to giving last rites to the penny, the bill could give the nickel a physical makeover as well. In fiscal 2025, it cost 13 cents to produce one nickel — another example of government bloat that could attract more attention now that the penny is going the way of floppy disks and the Blackberry in becoming a relic. The bill authorizes the Treasury to test cheaper materials to remake the five-cent coin. However, Trump can’t simply kill the nickel on a whim like he did the penny. The legislation obligates the Treasury to notify Congress if it tries phasing out another coin, such as the nickel.
对于第119届国会而言，这是立法部门难得一次按照预期方式发挥作用的例子。众议院版本的法案由众议院共和党会议主席丽莎·麦克莱恩议员，以及在众议院监督委员会中领导民主党议员的特朗普政敌罗伯特·加西亚共同提出。在参议院，该法案由民主党人克丽丝廷·吉列布兰德、罗恩·怀登以及共和党人辛西娅·拉米斯和詹姆斯·兰克福德牵头推动。
For the 119th Congress, this serves as an all-too-rare instance of the legislative branch functioning as intended. The House version of the bill was co-sponsored by Rep. Lisa McClain, chair of the House Republican Conference, and Robert Garcia, the Trump foe leading Democrats on the House Oversight Committee. In the Senate, it was spearheaded by Democrats Kirsten Gillibrand and Ron Wyden and Republicans Cynthia Lummis and James Lankford.
特朗普经济学有效吗？通货膨胀增长超过工资增长两党合作打破了长期僵局，通货膨胀飙升在不久的将来可能会继续居高不下，这使得这一局面更加令人恼火。由于持续的人工智能建设推高了芯片价格，以及不受欢迎的伊朗战争限制了中东的石油运输，几乎所有东西的成本都更高。共和党控制的国会没有承认存在严重的经济问题需要解决，而是宁愿屈服于特朗普并避免激起他的愤怒。
Is Trumponomics working? Inflation growth outpacing wage growth The bipartisanship was a sharp break with a long stretch of gridlock, made all the more infuriating by a spike in inflation that will likely remain elevated for the near future. Just about everything costs more, thanks to an ongoing artificial intelligence buildout that has jacked up chip prices and an unpopular Iran war that has restrained oil shipping in the Middle East. Rather than admit there are serious economic problems to solve, the Republican-controlled Congress has preferred yielding to Trump and avoid provoking his fury.
难怪9月份发布的盖洛普民意调查显示，国会的支持率为16%。今年早些时候的另一项盖洛普调查显示，美国人认为国会议员的道德与汽车销售员和电话推销员相当。
No wonder a Gallup poll published in September recorded a 16% approval rating for Congress. Another Gallup survey earlier this year showed Americans believed members of Congress had ethics equivalent to car salespeople and telemarketers.
从《普通美分法案》中节省的5600万美元联邦资金也不应该被夸大。这只是国会分配给五角大楼的2026财年年度军费8，392亿美元中的一小部分（准确地说是0.00667%）。本届国会将因迎来历史性的43天政府关门、一系列赤字激增的减税以及联邦医疗补助和补充营养援助计划的资金削减而闻名，这些计划现在才开始生效。
The $56 million in federal funding saved from the Common Cents Act shouldn’t be blown out of proportion either. It’s a tiny fraction — 0.00667% to be precise — of the $839.2 billion that Congress allocated to the Pentagon for annual military spending in fiscal 2026. This Congress will be mostly known for ushering through a historic 43-day government shutdown, a deficit-exploding set of tax cuts and federal funding reductions for Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that are only now starting to kick in.
立法者常常花一美元来节省一毛钱。尽管如此，如果有希望修复一个数学问题经常不成立的政府，那么取消一分钱是一个不错的开始。国会结束后刚刚改变了现金支付方式MS NOW
Lawmakers all too often spend a dollar to save a dime. Still, if there’s to be any hope of fixing a government where the math frequently doesn’t add up, nixing the penny is a decent start. The post Congress just changed how you pay in cash MS NOW