February 2005
Program Administration:
Much of the infrastructure needed to implement this plan is already in place. The Bureau of Public Debt currently offers a service called TreasuryDirect. TreasuryDirect is a financial services website that allows investors to buy and redeem securities directly from the U.S. Department of the Treasury in paperless electronic form. The government would simply need to copy the existing TreasuryDirect technology and adapt it to meet the specific needs of this program. The benefit of TreasuryDirect is that there are no brokerage fees or other transaction charges. Therefore, the administrative expenses would be minimal.
This program should be relatively easy to implement by relying on the TreasuryDirect infrastructure. All account holders would receive an annual paper statement. However, an account holder would also have the option of reviewing and managing his or her account via a secure Internet connection. Monthly distribution checks would be eligible for direct deposit into an account holder’s checking account. Also, an account holder could schedule electronic contributions into his or her account via the website or through a more traditional means.
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