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Treasury backs off requirement that Social Security recipients, others take extra step to get $1,200 checks

Michael Collins, USA TODAY
USA TODAYApril 1, 2020, 8:15 PM CDT

WASHINGTON – Facing stiff criticism, the Treasury Department abruptly changed course late Wednesday and announced that Social Security beneficiaries and other Americans who haven’t filed income taxes for the past two years won’t have to take any extra steps to receive one-time checks of up to $1,200 under a new economic recovery program.

“Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return need to take no action and will receive their payment directly to their bank account,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.

Most Americans won’t have to do anything to receive a payment under the $2.2 trillion program designed to help the economy recover from the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The checks will be sent automatically within the next three weeks to eligible Americans who filed tax returns in 2018 and 2019.

But the Internal Revenue Service posted a notice on its website earlier this week saying people who typically don’t file taxes would need to file a simple tax return to receive one of the payments. That would have included low-income taxpayers, senior citizens, Social Security recipients, some veterans and individuals with disabilities who are otherwise not required to file a tax return.

Wednesday's announcement reverses that decision. Mnuchin said the IRS will now use Social Security data to generate payments to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019. Recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits, he said.

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The Treasury Department has the authority under the economic recovery program, which President Donald Trump signed into law last week, to ask the Social Security Administration and other agencies to supply the data it needs to process the checks.

One of the reasons Treasury officials may have wanted to require a simple tax form from those who haven't paid taxes in the past two years is to make sure they are sending checks to the most up-to-date address,” said Kyle Pomerleau, an economist at the American Enterprise Institute, a public policy think tank.

“Lots of people move, so this is a reasonable way to deal with it," he said.

The downside, Pomerleau said, “is that you are shifting part of the burden on people by requiring them to do something to get their rebate.”

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The filing requirement raised objections from some lawmakers. Forty-one senators sent a letter Wednesday to Mnuchin arguing that the requirement would place “a significant burden” on retired seniors and people with disabilities.

“We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return,” the letter said.

The IRS said it is setting up a web-based portal at IRS.gov/coronavirus to provide more information on how to file a 2019 tax return and receive a payment.
How your stimulus check is calculated

If you've already filed your 2019 taxes, the IRS will use those returns to determine your payment. If not, your 2018 returns will be used to calculate your check.

Individuals with an adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less will be eligible for a one-time payment of up to $1,200 ($2,400 for joint tax returns) and $500 for each qualifying child. Those with little or no tax liability also will get $1,200 ($2,400 for joint returns).

The payments will start to phase out for Americans who earn more than $75,000, or $150,000 for a joint return. The amount you receive will be decreased by 5% of the amount your income exceeds $75,000. For example, a single person with an $85,000 salary would get $700 after subtracting 5% of $10,000, or $500.

The payments will phase out completely for single filers with incomes exceeding $99,000, $136,500 for head of household filers with one child, and $198,000 for joint filers with no children.

Stimulus check calculator: Calculate how much money you could get
How will the money be provided?

Americans who already have provided the IRS with their bank account information will receive the money as a direct deposit. Those who haven’t will receive a check in the mail, although experts warn the wait for physical checks could take longer than three weeks. Those who want a direct deposit but haven’t provided their bank account information can do so through the IRS’s new online portal.

While the web portal will make it easier to provide that information and get answers to other questions, “lack of web access – or a lack of knowledge even if one has the internet – is going to be a bigger challenge for low-income individuals,” said Garrett Watson, an economist at the Tax Foundation, a Washington-based think tank. “The IRS should explore ways to get to those individuals outside of a digital platform.”

Tax preparation services – both commercial and non-profit – should be able to help individuals update their information if they don’t have web access, he said.

Meanwhile, online payment services such as Venmo have been in discussions with Treasury officials about helping to distribute the checks to consumers.

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Justin Higgs, spokesman for Venmo owner PayPal, confirmed that talks are underway but declined to provide more information.

Jodie Kelley, chief executive officer of the Electronic Transactions Association, said the industry has offered its assistance to Treasury “to quickly and securely deliver stimulus money to American consumers.”

“Electronic payments can deliver these funds far more quickly than the time it takes to print, mail and cash a check,” she said. “It's also an important delivery method for the over 14 million Americans who do not have bank accounts, and thus do not have a ready way to cash a check.”

Watson said the IRS and Treasury will need to take steps to ensure taxpayer privacy is preserved in any partnership with online payment services.

Well, we want the Mexicans with their fake ss numbers to get a check too.

you are shifting part of the burden on people by requiring them to do something to get their rebate.

Receipt of entitlements like Social Security typically make people lazier, so it is no surprise that there would be backlash over having to do even one minor thing that millions do every year, to receive said entitlement.

What about my kid who is in college and did not file?

Social Security is NOT an Entitlement------------I've paid into it over 50 years.

Social Security is NOT an Entitlement------------I've paid into it over 50 years.

Some folks can't help being stupid.

ISSI is an entitlement (welfare), SSA is not. Many folks have a confusion about that and need to be educated.

Yeah, let's not do anything to try and reduce scamming.
As far as I'm concerned, if they receive Social Security payments and don't file tax returns, they can go through that small amount of hassle.

What about my kid who is in college and did not file?

I know you boomers have deluded yourselves for years while you voted all kinds of perks that you knew your kids would be paying for, but both I and the Social Security Administration know better. You are an entitlement recipient regardless of how angry that makes you.

If you want to play with language...so be it.

Yes it is. The Social Security Administration themselves describe it that way.

You should call the Social Security Administration and demand they change all of their literature.

How about this: are the actual dollars you paid in the same dollars being sent back to you?

I'm not playing with language, you idiots are. You are the ones claiming Social Security is not an entitlement program. You people lie that SSI is and SSA is not. You refuse to accept responsibility for your actions because you only voted for representatives who voted you bread and circuses and stuck us with the bill.

But both I and the SSA see you for what you are no matter how much you lie.

I'm quite happy to support you. I'd rather that than have to step over you on a sidewalk on my way to work.But I'm not going to pretend along with you.

Social Security is NOT an Entitlement------------I've paid into it over 50 years.

I'm not playing with language, you idiots are. You are the ones claiming Social Security is not an entitlement program. You people lie that SSI is and SSA is not. You refuse to accept responsibility for your actions because you only voted for representatives who voted you bread and circuses and stuck us with the bill.

But both I and the SSA see you for what you are no matter how much you lie.

I'm quite happy to support you. I'd rather that than have to step over you on a sidewalk on my way to work.But I'm not going to pretend along with you.

One of the things that some of my readers get REALLY fired up about is when Social Security is referred to as an “entitlement”.

I can understand why. After all, the term “entitlement” has taken on a demeaning definition that insinuates getting something that you haven’t earned (or even deserve).

But is it possible we are all being jerked around a little bit here by those with something to gain from fanning the flames of division?

...What’s happened here is that they’ve effectively redefined the word entitlement into something that is divisive and dirty. How handy.

...What does Entitlement mean?

So why do they refer to it this way and does it have a negative connotation?

If you examine the definition of the word entitlement, you’ll see there is no mention of welfare, charity or handouts.

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines it as “a government program providing benefits to members of a specified group.”

The Cambridge dictionary defines it as “something, often a benefit from the government, that you have the right to have.”

Then, in the glossary of the United States Senate, the word entitlement is defined as “a federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit that meets the eligibility criteria.”
Is Social Security an entitlement? A hand out or a right? Or, does it mean something else entirely? This word fires up a lot of people, so let's explore what entitlement actually means.

The fact is, the phrase “entitlement program” is simply a term for any government program guaranteeing certain benefits to a segment of the population who qualify for them under specific terms and conditions.

That’s exactly what Social Security is. You have to work for at least 10 years with a certain amount of earnings to be ENTITLED to your own benefit.

There’s nothing dirty, shameful or beggarly about this word.

But in the highly politicized world that we live in, what words actually mean and the meaning given to words aren’t always the same.

entitlement noun

en·​ti·​tle·​ment | \ in-ˈtī-tᵊl-mənt , en- \
Definition of entitlement 1a : the state or condition of being entitled : right b : a right to benefits specified especially by law or contract
2 : belief that one is deserving of or entitled to certain privileges
3 : a government program providing benefits to members of a specified group also : funds supporting or distributed by such a program]

The problem is in the misinterpretation of the meaning of the word, "Entitlement"..

Oh, & BTW, the word "boomer" seems to be a favorite of whining assed liberals that are continuously looking for someone to blame. Does the shoe fit?

same as buying a $10,000 CD

Of course it is an entitlement you lying boomers.

Yeah, let's not do anything to try and reduce scamming.
As far as I'm concerned, if they receive Social Security payments and don't file tax returns, they can go through that small amount of hassle.

Yes it is. The Social Security Administration themselves describe it that way.

I'm not playing with language, you idiots are. You are the ones claiming Social Security is not an entitlement program. You people lie that SSI is and SSA is not. You refuse to accept responsibility for your actions because you only voted for representatives who voted you bread and circuses and stuck us with the bill.

But both I and the SSA see you for what you are no matter how much you lie.

I'm quite happy to support you. I'd rather that than have to step over you on a sidewalk on my way to work.But I'm not going to pretend along with you.

You obviously don't know any social security recipients living on < $1500/month.

I AM entitled to some of the money I paid over 57 years

Wow! You really can't help yourself.

Call it what you want

You are entitled to a benefit because you paid in and meet the other qualifications, that is why the SSA and I and everyone else who isn't lying or ignorant call it an entitlement program.

But your money that you paid in is already spent, as you note.

I'm calling it what it is, it is the people who say it isn't an entitlement program who are calling it what they want. If stating facts is being a dick I am a dick all day every day.

When you reach SS age dont accept yours!

You obviously don't know any social security recipients living on < $1500/month.

My mother in law. I buy her groceries, take her to appointments, pay bills, etc.

Because that’s what families do.

Gov has, whether by design or stupidity, eroded this sense of obligation with its “safety nets”. FDR was brilliant in this regard. Johnson even more so.

Over my lifetime (born 1975) I’ve observed that neither of the two parties cares one lick for making the tough choices necessary to keep our society running as the FFs intended.

Mark’s point stands; people who are in need of our grand- and great-grandchildren’s money offered so easily by the hacks in DC ought to expect to have to prove something to get it. There is nothing wrong with that.

This thread turned into a discussion of SS when it was started about the COVID19 relief bill.

You are jumping to conclusions if you think that.
I stand by my opinion. If you are receiving SS benefits and don't file taxes, you need to prove you are who you are and that you are entitled to those benefits.
Besides, WTF does living on $1500 a month have to do with this? Please explain in English.

And you obviously didn't read or possibly understand my reply to your post, which had nothing to do with what you last rambled about.

But, Rock On.

You don't get it, and I'm not going to waste my time to explain it to you.

People living on < $1,500 a month have more important things to do and be concerned about than jump through any extra paperwork hoops you think are necessary. They're too busy trying to figure out where the next meal is coming from.

There is no "recertification" for Social Security.

Boy I guess I needed to spell it out more explicitly.

My mother in law relies only on her SS which is <$1500/month.

I’d thought I’d give you the benefit of the doubt but “rock on.”

Or the amount of money we’re talking about they can do it or not get the money.

Your “logic” reminds me of those who act as tho showing legal ID to vote is some insurmountable obstacle.

Well excuse the fuuk out of me your Highness!
You don't have any edge on understanding poor people or people on fixed income.
Being melodramatic about it just makes you look like a jerk.