Social Security and other federal benefits payments will be made by direct deposit by 2013.

The Washington Post reports that most Social Security and other federal benefits payments will be made by direct deposit by 2013.
The decision will eliminate about 136 million paper checks sent by the Social Security Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, Railroad Retirement Board and Office of Personnel Management.

The switch is part of a broader plan to shift away from paper-based payments and transactions, and it will require businesses using Federal Tax Deposit coupons to move to electronic tax payments. The Treasury also plans to cut the purchase of paper savings bonds through payroll sales. The plans should save taxpayers about $400 million in processing, postage and paper costs in the first five years.

Americans who enroll on or after March 1, 2011, for benefits payments will receive them by direct deposit or be enrolled in the government's Direct Express Debit MasterCard program if they do not provide bank account information. Beneficiaries now receiving payments will switch to direct deposit or the debit card by March 1, 2013, after agencies inform them of the changes, Treasury said.

Prior efforts at mandating direct payments have failed because the government had not established the debit card program for people who don't have bank accounts.

http://www.usdirectexpress.com/edcfdtclient/index.html



The Direct Express® card surcharge-free ATM network offers surcharge free ATM access at approximately 50,000 ATMs throughout the country including Comerica Bank, Charter One, Privileged Status, Alliance One, PNC Bank, MasterCard® ATM Alliance, and MoneyPass To find an ATM near you , please visit the Direct Express® card website at www.USDirectExpress.com or call the Customer Service Department toll free at 1 (888) 741-1115.



Even if you don't live near a Direct Express® card surcharge-free network ATM you can avoid fees by

Using your Direct Express® card at retail locations when you make purchases instead of getting cash at an ATM.
Getting cash back for free when you make purchases at many retail locations
Going to any bank or credit union that displays the MasterCard® acceptance mark and get cash from a teller free of charge.
It is important that you keep track of your deposits and how much you spend using your Direct Express® card. You can obtain balance information at no cost by calling the Direct Express® card Customer Service Department, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at 1 (888) 741-1115 (toll-free). You can view your account information at www.USDirectExpress.com or obtain balance information at any ATM that displays the MasterCard® acceptance mark, at no cost. You can also request free optional deposit notification and low balance alerts. For a monthly fee of $ .75, you may request that a monthly paper statement be mailed to you.


__._,_.___