The U.S. Treasury Department said this week that a new payment verification process helped identify more than 4,900 federal payments, valued at about $99 million, that went to dead people.
These payments were returned to the proper federal agencies before any funds were disbursed, the department said in a press release Tuesday.
“Treasury has delivered on a key promise of President Trump’s mandate to stop improper payments and fraud before money leaves the Treasury, and strengthen the integrity of the federal payment system,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
Under Executive Order 14249, the Treasury Department said it was able to expand efforts to detect fraud and improper payments through the Do Not Pay program and new payment verification tools. A piece of legislation passed by Congress in February also gives the Treasury more access to the Social Security Administration’s Full Death Master File.
