Congress is considering doing away with the dollar bill. It wouldn't ax the denomination entirely, but would instead replace the bills with the $1 coin, a move that would save taxpayers (who almost universally dislike dollar coins) $4.4 billion over the next three decades. That estimate comes from the Government Accountability Office, which is looking at ways to save money by tweaking our money. The last time a big metallurgical change occurred was almost 50 years ago, when silver was removed from quarters and dimes. Though it would take several years for the benefits of $1 coins to outweigh the cost of the change, the fact that coins circulate for 30 years while paper bills are replaced in four or five would lead to long-term savings. Read more