Go Direct's countdown to paperless begins

On March 1, 2012, U.S. Treasurer of the United States Rosie Rios began the official countdown clock for when all federal benefit payments will be dispersed electronically. By March 1, 2013, all recipients of primarily Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments will either have funds direct deposited to bank accounts or loaded onto MasterCard Worldwide-branded DirectExpress prepaid debit cards.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury said approximately 90 percent of SSI payments are already disbursed electronically. The number of monthly paper checks cut by the government and mailed to recipients via SSI, Veterans Affairs, Railroad Retirement Board, Office of Personnel Management and other federal benefits programs reportedly dropped to about 7 million in 2011, down from around 11 million in 2010.

The online countdown clock, found at www.godirect.org , is part of the Treasury Department's Go Direct program to educate recipients of the benefits of going to paperless payments, namely because such payments are seen as faster, more convenient and more reliable. The Treasury Department began the transition of paper to plastic in December 2010. As of May 1, 2011, all new recipients of federal benefits choose between direct deposit or the Direct Express card.

By transitioning to electronic payments, the Treasury expects to save $1 billion over 10 years in reduced paper check handling and disbursement costs. According to Treasury statistics, California, Texas and New York state disburse the highest number of federal benefits checks; Wyoming, Alaska and North Dakota disburse the least.

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