The Government announced today that it intends to move away from issuing paper checks and move toward an electronic system. For people who apply for benefits from the Social Security Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Personnel Management, and Railroad Retirement Board after May 1st next year, they will receive their benefits electronically.
For those already receiving benefits, they will have until March 1, 2013 to sign up for direct deposit.
“Eight in 10 federal benefit recipients already use direct deposit, and now millions of additional retirees, veterans and other Americans will also receive their money in the safest, most reliable way—electronically,” Treasury Fiscal Assistant Secretary Richard Gregg said in a statement.
“This important change will provide significant savings to American taxpayers who will no longer incur the annual $120 million price tag associated with paper checks and will save Social Security $1 billion over the next 10 years,” Gregg added.
This change will affect nearly 140 Million recipients and bring significant government savings as well as convenience and safety for the public.
