Now that the U.S. Mint has stopped making pennies, can an Arkansas store round cash transactions to the nearest nickel, including for SNAP customers paying cash for the non-SNAP portion of a mixed transaction?

Plain-English summary

Representative Matthew Brown asked about retailers rounding cash change to the nearest nickel after penny production stopped. His first question concerned a mixed purchase: the SNAP-eligible part is charged electronically at the exact amount, while a customer pays cash for the non-SNAP part.

The AG said neither Arkansas nor federal law specifically prohibits rounding that cash portion when the SNAP portion is charged exactly. Federal SNAP rules require eligible foods to be sold to SNAP users at the same prices and on the same terms as cash purchasers, and forbid singling out SNAP users for special treatment. The AG said a retailer may consider rounding non-cash transactions, including SNAP, in the same way as cash. He did not make uniform rounding a condition of the answer and declined a detailed federal-law analysis.

Arkansas law does not prescribe a particular method of making change to a SNAP recipient in a cash transaction. It also does not expressly require identical treatment of cash and credit-card payments. The AG therefore said cash rounding while charging exact pennies on cards likely does not, by itself, violate other Arkansas law. He advised retailers to review applicable sales-tax law and any credit or debit surcharge restrictions.

What this means for you

If you run a SNAP-authorized store

Keep the SNAP-eligible electronic portion of a mixed sale at its exact amount. For the separate cash portion, the opinion finds no specific federal or Arkansas bar to nickel rounding. Avoid treating SNAP customers differently from cash customers for the same eligible foods. Uniform rounding is an option the AG suggested for consideration, not a rule he imposed. Check applicable tax and card-payment restrictions before setting a store-wide policy.

If you build a point-of-sale system

Separate the exact electronic SNAP charge from any rounding applied to the non-SNAP cash portion. The opinion does not prescribe a particular rounding algorithm, nor does it require every payment method to be rounded identically. It does identify equal SNAP treatment, sales tax, and surcharge restrictions as issues a retailer must consider.

Common questions

Must a retailer round every sale the same way?

No such requirement appears in the opinion. The AG said retailers may consider uniform rounding, while expressly declining a detailed analysis of federal SNAP law.

May the SNAP-eligible portion itself be rounded?

The AG's answer assumes it is charged electronically at the exact amount. He did not approve rounding that portion in the mixed-purchase scenario presented.

Does Arkansas prescribe how to make cash change to a SNAP recipient?

No. The AG expressly said Arkansas law does not prescribe a particular method.

Is penny rounding on cash while cards are charged exactly always lawful?

The AG said it likely does not, by itself, violate Arkansas law because the state does not expressly require identical cash and card treatment. He did not give a blanket approval; sales-tax and surcharge rules still need review.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion quotes 7 C.F.R. § 278.2(b)'s rule that SNAP payments for eligible food must be accepted at the same price and on the same terms as cash payments, without special treatment of SNAP users. It notes that pennies remain legal tender and that Arkansas does not prescribe a specific way to make change. The AG confined his federal SNAP discussion to a general observation and declined to resolve detailed federal compliance questions.

Citations and references

Federal:

• 31 U.S.C. § 5103, legal tender
• 7 C.F.R. § 278.2(b): SNAP retailer equal-treatment rule

Arkansas AG opinion precedents on out-of-scope federal-law questions:

• Op. 2025-069
• Op. 2025-010
• Op. 2008-112
• Op. 2005-170
• Op. 2003-094
• Op. 98-254

External:

• U.S. Mint, "Penny FAQs: Why is Circulating Penny Production Being Suspended?" (content last updated Jan. 7, 2026), https://www.usmint.gov/news/media-kit/penny

Source

• Landing page: https://arkansasag.gov/divisions/opinions-foia/attorney-general-opinions-search/

Original opinion text

TIM GRIFFIN
ATTORNEY GENERAL

Opinion No. 2025-115

January 16, 2026

The Honorable Matthew K. Brown
State Representative
3010 Pheasant Road
Conway, Arkansas 72034

Dear Representative Brown:

I am writing in response to your request for my opinion on rounding transactions, given that the U.S. Mint no longer produces the penny.

You report that because “the U.S. Mint stopped production of the penny,” several “financial entities have suspended penny orders,” leaving retailers unable to provide exact change to cash-paying customers. Consequently, retailers have adopted different rounding practices, typically rounding up or down to the nearest nickel.

You also note that industry groups have sought guidance from the United States Department of Agriculture on whether rounding cash transactions may violate federal regulations concerning Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments.

Against this background, you ask the following questions:

1. Under Arkansas and federal law, may a SNAP-authorized retailer lawfully round up or
   down to the nearest nickel when providing change to a SNAP recipient during a non-SNAP
   cash transaction while charging the exact amount for the SNAP-eligible portion of the
   transaction? For example, when a SNAP recipient purchases both SNAP-eligible and
   SNAP-ineligible items, the transaction must be processed as two separate transactions.
   Because the SNAP portion of the transaction is electronic, the exact amount of the
   transaction is charged. However, if a SNAP customer chooses to pay cash for the non-
   SNAP portion of the transaction, may the retailer lawfully round the cash transaction to the
   nearest nickel?

   Brief response: Neither Arkansas nor federal law specifically prohibits a retailer from
   rounding the cash portion of a mixed SNAP transaction to the nearest
   nickel, as long as the SNAP-eligible portion is charged electronically at

                        BOB R. BROOKS JR. JUSTICE BUILDING
                            101 WEST CAPITOL AVENUE
                          LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS 72201
   

The Honorable Matthew K. Brown
State Representative
Opinion No. 2025-115
Page 2

the exact amount. The key federal requirement is that businesses accepting SNAP payments cannot treat customers who use SNAP coupons differently from those who use cash. To comply with federal SNAP law, a business may consider rounding all non-cash transactions (including SNAP transactions) in the same manner as it rounds cash transactions. But a detailed analysis of federal law is outside the scope of an Attorney General opinion.

2. Under Arkansas law, is there a preferred method for providing change during a cash
   transaction with a SNAP recipient?

   Brief response: No. Arkansas law does not prescribe any particular method for providing
   change to SNAP recipients during cash transactions.

3. In general, are there any other laws or regulations which prohibit a retailer from rounding
   cash transactions to the nearest nickel while charging credit, debit, or check transactions to
   the exact penny?

   Brief response: Because Arkansas law does not expressly require cash and credit card
   transactions to be treated identically, penny rounding for cash
   transactions likely does not, by itself, violate other Arkansas laws.
   Retailers should still review the applicable sales tax law and surcharge
   restrictions, if any, on credit and debit transactions to ensure compliance.

DISCUSSION

Question 1: Under Arkansas and federal law, may a SNAP-authorized retailer lawfully round up or down to the nearest nickel when providing change to a SNAP recipient during a non-SNAP cash transaction while charging the exact amount for the SNAP-eligible portion of the transaction? For example, when a SNAP recipient purchases both SNAP-eligible and SNAP-ineligible items, the transaction must be processed as two separate transactions. Because the SNAP portion of the transaction is electronic, the exact amount of the transaction is charged. However, if a SNAP customer chooses to pay cash for the non-SNAP portion of the transaction, may the retailer lawfully round the cash transaction to the nearest nickel?

Question 2: Under Arkansas law, is there a preferred method for providing change during a cash transaction with a SNAP recipient?

Question 3: In general, are there any other laws or regulations which prohibit a retailer from rounding cash transactions to the nearest nickel while charging credit, debit, or check transactions to the exact penny?

To answer all three questions together, this opinion examines the relevant laws governing rounding transactions at a point of sale. Although the U.S. Department of the Treasury no longer produces

The Honorable Matthew K. Brown
State Representative
Opinion No. 2025-115
Page 3

pennies,1 they remain legal tender.2 Neither federal nor state law—constitutional, statutory, or regulatory—requires private businesses to accept cash payments. While local ordinances may impose such requirements,3 a business in this State may generally create its own policies on whether to accept cash. If a business accepts cash, the next question is whether federal or state law governs rounding change for cash payments.

Under federal law, a business accepting SNAP payments cannot treat customers who use SNAP coupons differently from those who use cash: such payments “shall be accepted for eligible foods at the same prices and on the same terms and conditions applicable to cash purchases of the same foods at the same store.”4 Further, “[n]o retail food store may single out [SNAP] coupon users for special treatment in any way.”5 That means federal law prohibits retailers from giving SNAP coupon users discriminatory or preferential treatment.

While some states prohibit businesses from imposing credit card surcharges or charging cash-paying customers more than those who use non-cash payment, Arkansas does not. Additionally, Arkansas law does not prescribe a particular method for providing change during cash transactions with SNAP recipients. Because Arkansas law does not expressly require cash and credit card transactions to be treated identically, penny rounding for cash transactions likely does not, by itself, violate other Arkansas laws.

To comply with federal SNAP law, a business may consider rounding all non-cash transactions (including SNAP transactions) in the same manner as it rounds cash transactions. Ultimately, a detailed analysis of federal law is outside the scope of an Attorney General opinion.6 But even if uniform rounding prevents retailers from giving SNAP coupon users discriminatory or preferential treatment under federal law, retailers should still review the applicable sales tax law and surcharge restrictions, if any, on credit and debit transactions to ensure compliance.7

1
See Penny FAQs: Why is Circulating Penny Production Being Suspended?, U.S. MINT, https://www.usmint.gov/news/media-kit/penny (content last updated Jan. 7, 2026). 2 See 31 U.S.C. § 5103.
3
This opinion does not reach any conclusion regarding the legality of such ordinances.
4
7 C.F.R. § 278.2(b).
5
Id.
6
E.g., Ark. Att’y Gen. Ops. 2025-069, 2025-010, 2008-112, 2005-170, 2003-094, 98-254.
7
Surcharges are generally governed by federal law and an agreement between credit card companies and merchants. Whether rounding a transaction down or up is even a “surcharge” is a question of fact outside of the scope of this opinion.

The Honorable Matthew K. Brown
State Representative
Opinion No. 2025-115
Page 4

Assistant Attorney General William R. Olson prepared this opinion, which I hereby approve.

Sincerely,

TIM GRIFFIN
Attorney General