December Social Security Payments

We have heard rumors in the BANKERS' HOTLINE office about Social Security payments being made early, to allow for glitches because of Y2K. Here is the real story?from the Social Security Administration and the Federal Reserve Bank.

Electronic payments from the Federal Reserve that go to financial institutions will begin on December 28, and all electronic payments will be completed by December 30. The Social Security Administration reasons that by advancing the delivery date by at least one day, they will be giving banks more time to process the payments.

HOWEVER, the settlement date of SSA payments will be Monday, January 3, 2000.

Social security checks and SSI checks will be delivered TO THE POST OFFICE one day earlier, December 29, 1999. Delivery date to recipients should be on the normal day. Fed is simply insuring there will be no delay by getting the checks out to the delivery points early - to the delivery points, not to the recipients.

Fed will be issuing a bulletin regarding SSA benefit delivery at a later date.

A word of caution. If your customer calls (as many do) to see if their payment has been posted to their account, check several dates. Your financial institution may have posted earlier than usual, and checking a single date may miss it?and upset your customer.

You definitely DON'T want to do that!

Copyright © 1999 Bankers' Hotline. Originally appeared in Bankers' Hotline, Vol. 9, No. 10, 11/99