[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 160 (Monday, October 24, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1901]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          KEEP PAYMENT OPTIONS AVAILABLE FOR AMERICA'S SENIORS

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                          HON. LARRY KISSELL-

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 24, 2011

  Mr. KISSELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring before the House some 
serious concerns I have regarding the impact of certain paperwork 
reduction measures that are being considered by various agencies of the 
federal government and the seeming lack of concern on how this changes 
will affect senior citizens in North Carolina's 8th District.
  We are all aware of the need to make government more efficient and 
reduce the costs of services. The revolution in digital communications 
offers opportunities to do exactly that. However, I have noticed a 
troubling trend. In the rush to achieve these efficiencies, we may be 
unintentionally harming some of the most vulnerable people in our 
society by imposing new costs on folks with limited options.
  For example, in May, the Social Security Administration implemented 
the first phase of a plan to eliminate the mailing of Social Security 
checks to recipients who have not registered for direct deposit of 
their monthly benefit checks. There are a number of reasons why all 
citizens don't sign up for direct deposit. Some like to physically take 
their check to the bank to be sure of the date it was actually 
deposited. There are others who are honestly skeptical of financial 
institutions and simply don't trust the direct deposit process. Another 
category is the so-called ``un-banked'' and they simply do not own a 
banking account.
  A growing number of citizens, Mr. Speaker, are increasingly concerned 
about cyber-security and identity theft. They are limiting their use of 
computer technology for their most sensitive and important financial 
transactions. And with each week bringing news of data thefts, cyber 
security breaches and phishing scams, who can blame them?
  So in place of their Social Security check, the Social Security 
Administration has begun to send out a debit card that will allow 
recipients to access their Social Security benefits electronically. 
Here's the problem: If you don't have a bank account and you are 
already skeptical of electronic transactions, how does a debit card 
work for you? It is very possible that many of the places folks in my 
district shop simply don't accept electronic payments. And for you to 
get cash from an ATM to use in those places means you are now paying a 
fee--after the first free transaction--for the privilege of spending 
your hard-earned Social Security Benefits.
  What are older Americans to do when more of their limited income goes 
to pay bank fees for use of their debit cards? It would seem to me that 
instead of creating a more efficient and fiscally responsible 
government we may instead be shifting costs from the government to 
people least able to pay for the increased cost of these services. 
These unfair fees amount to a new tax on consumers.
  Another example of the push to go completely electronic is the recent 
announcement by the Social Security Administration regarding the annual 
earnings statements. Not only is it an important tool for retirement 
planning, but it is also a critical way for hard working wage earners 
to confirm that the government has accurately recorded their earnings. 
The mailing of these statements is being discontinued. A more limited 
version of the form will eventually be available online, however, the 
all-important listing of a citizen's earnings by year will not appear 
in the online version.
  Now why would citizens who are already concerned about cyber-security 
want to log in with sensitive Social Security information in order to 
check their records? And for those citizens without a computer or the 
skills to use one, this new policy simply denies them the benefits of 
seeing the annual earnings statement altogether.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe the digital revolution holds great promise for 
our nation. But we need to make sure in our ``rush to digitize'' that 
we are not leaving the middle class and vulnerable citizens behind and 
that the cost efficiencies we are creating are not simply a matter of 
shifting costs from the government to the people who cannot afford to 
pay another tax.
  How do we make sure of that? One effective method would be through a 
comprehensive federal policy that will guide federal agencies in making 
sure that their digital transitions do not disenfranchise key blocks of 
our citizens. We should seriously consider a tough set of oversight 
hearings in the U.S. Congress to make sure that digital policies are 
being implemented fairly and deliberately.
  Mr. Speaker, we cannot and we do not want to turn back the clock on 
the digital revolution. In an era when private sector financial 
institutions are implementing significant fees on customers who wish to 
continue to receive paper statements, however, we cannot allow our 
federal government to follow a similar path. Such discriminatory fees 
are wrong and we must insure that our government continues to serve all 
our citizens and does not adopt policies regarding access to 
information that penalize key segments of our population.
  All Americans should be able to benefit from the digital revolution. 
However, the federal government must assure that its policies treat all 
Americans equally, with services provided in a manner and method that 
can be effectively utilized, whether on paper or otherwise. We owe it 
to all our citizens to insure these basic protections.

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