@abc7chicago: The U.S. Treasury Department says it will phase out production of new pennies early next year after President Donald Trump asked the agency to stop producing the coin that has been part of the American currency for more than 230 years. The Treasury Department said in a statement that the U.S. Mint, which it oversees, will stop producing new pennies once it runs out of blank templates used to make the mostly copper and zinc coins. The agency confirmed that it made its final order of penny blanks this month. #news #treasury #penny