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Christiansburg adopts cash‑rounding policy as pennies fall out of circulation
Summary
Council approved a cash‑rounding policy after the U.S. penny ceased production: cash payments will be rounded (monthly utility cents carried as credits; annual bills rounded down to nearest nickel); checks and cards unaffected.
Christiansburg Town Council on Dec. 9 adopted a policy to handle the practical impacts of the United States Treasury ending penny production.
Town staff explained their recommended approach for cash‑only payments: for monthly utility and other recurring bills, small overages or shortages would carry forward on a citizen’s account as a credit or debit to the next bill; for annual accounts such as real estate and personal property taxes, cash payments would be rounded down to the nearest nickel. Staff stressed that checks and credit‑card payments would continue to include pennies and that the policy applies only to cash transactions.
Treasurer/finance staff noted operational questions remain, including whether rounding will require additional system adjustments and whether the town may eventually stop accepting pennies if banks can no longer supply them. Council voted to adopt the policy and asked staff to monitor the operational impacts and report back if revisions are necessary.
Direct quote from staff: "For real estate personal property taxes or other annual bills, it'd be rounded down to the nearest nickel."
