A bill was signed into law this week that gives the U.S. Department of the Treasury permanent access to data that will curb the improper payment of taxpayer dollars made to deceased individuals.
The Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act (S. 269) authorizes the Social Security Administration (SSA) to share its complete death records with the Treasury to enhance the effectiveness of the Department’s Do Not Pay service.
SSA’s current authority to share this data expires at the end of 2026.
In 2021, the SSA received authority to share its full death data with Treasury’s DNP service to curb improper payments made to deceased individuals for a three-year period beginning in December 2023.
By the end of 2026 when the current authority expires, this data exchange is projected to save $330 million across the federal government.
An identical bill, H.R. 2716, passed through the U.S. House of Representatives.
“This cooperation between Treasury and the Social Security Administration is a proven fraud prevention measure that has already saved American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. In its first year of implementation, it stopped over $100 million in improper payments going to dead people. Americans deserve a government that makes every effort to defeat waste, fraud, and abuse within the bureaucracy, and this commonsense policy will ensure an effective tool remains in place to safeguard the taxpayers’ hard-earned money,” Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, said.