The problem
The end of the penny does not create one universal rounding rule.
State statutes, local authority, federal action and agency guidance can each shape what a cash transaction should do. Every decision passes through the same chain.
01
Transaction
Cash tender, amount, items
02
Jurisdiction
Where the sale occurs
03
Authority
Which law or guidance governs
04
Tender & context
Mixed tender, actor, direction
05
Rounding rule
Method, version, effective date
06
Tax & refunds
Order of operations, reversals
07
Evidence
What can be reconstructed later
The product
The Decision & Evidence Engine
Your transaction system sends the transaction. Centsless returns the rule that applies and a record of why. The engine resolves jurisdiction at ZIP-level granularity, then evaluates the governing authority, transaction context, effective date, tender and other applicable conditions.
Input
POS / transaction system
Centsless
Decision & Evidence Engine
Authority · rule version · effective date · context
Output
Applicable rule
Output
Evidence record
Cash total
$10.02
Resolved total
$10.00
- Jurisdiction
- Alabama
- Rule profile
- Enacted rule on file · effective Apr 16, 2026
- Record
- Audit context retained
Source-linked profile · Rule-versioned · Re-verifiable
POS rounding vs. compliance
A POS system can perform rounding arithmetic.
The harder problem is determining whether, when, where and under what authority that arithmetic should execute.
POS
Executes the rounding
Centsless
Determines which rule should govern it
Solutions
Built for the systems that move cash.
POS Platforms
Embed regulatory decisioning without maintaining a fragmented jurisdictional rules layer internally.
ExploreMerchants
Apply consistent cash-rounding policies across locations while preserving transaction and accounting evidence.
ExploreFinancial Institutions
Navigate cash availability, merchant operations and post-penny transition requirements with authoritative intelligence.
ExploreSee it for yourself
Why the problem becomes operational.
Two tools that show what happens when one rounding assumption meets many rules.
Exposure Assessment
See where your states diverge
Select the jurisdictions you operate in and compare the enacted rules that would apply to the same cash transaction.
Open Exposure AssessmentFailure Simulation
See how a single rule assumption fails
Walk through how a uniform rounding assumption produces outcomes that differ from the applicable state rule.
Open Failure SimulationThe intelligence layer
Supported by continuously maintained regulatory intelligence.
The engine is backed by primary-source monitoring of state, local and federal activity. Each record is verified and dated in the tracker.
- 50-state monitoring
- Enacted and proposed legislation
- Federal developments
- Revenue and tax authority guidance
- Primary-source citations
- Rule divergence analysis
- States with at least one enacted cash-rounding authority
- 21
- States with legislation introduced or advancing, not yet enacted
- 7
- States with administrative guidance but no enacted statute
- 5
- States with any tracked record: enacted, pending, guidance or failed
- 37
Common Cents Act · H.R. 10167
- Legislative status
- Passed Congress
- Next step
- Presidential action
- Implementation
- Not in force. No federal implementation obligation yet.
Both chambers of Congress have passed H.R. 10167 in the same form. It becomes law only after presidential action. It is not in force today.
What this means for businesses: Nothing changes legally today. Businesses can prepare: understand the proposed rule, confirm POS behavior, and plan training, communication and documentation.
Last verified September 29, 2026Congress.gov recordFederal standard analysis
Original research
Centsless white papers
White paper · July 2026
The Machine Test
Why the cheaper nickel Congress just authorized depends on an evaluation no one can currently perform.
ReadWhite paper · July 2026
The Measurement Gap
Why America cannot answer the question Congress just asked about cash rounding, and what would make it answerable.
ReadWhite paper · August 2026
The Nickel-to-Dime Problem
Since the last circulating penny was minted in November 2025, states have built cash-rounding laws around the nickel. None is designed to adapt if the denomination changes again.
Read