Following Calls From Hassan and Colleagues, Treasury Department Says SSI Recipients Do Not Need to File Tax Returns to Receive COVID-19 Direct Cash Assistance

WASHINGTON – Following calls from U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and colleagues, the U.S. Treasury Department announced today that individuals who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits will automatically receive direct cash assistance included in the CARES Act without having to file tax returns. Very low-income seniors and people who experience disabilities generally receive those benefits.

Previously, also in response to calls from Senator Hassan, the Treasury Department announced that Social Security retirement and disability recipients will automatically receive direct cash assistance included in the CARES Act without having to file tax returns. Senator Hassan is leading a bipartisan effort with Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) to urge the Treasury Department to also provide direct cash assistance automatically to veterans and their families who receive disability and pension benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“I am grateful that the Treasury Department heeded our calls to ensure that people who experience disabilities and low-income seniors who receive Supplemental Security Income benefits do not have to file taxes to get their $1,200 direct cash assistance,” Senator Hassan said. “This assistance will provide urgently-needed financial relief to those who are struggling to get by as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. The Treasury Department should take further action now to institute a similar process for those who receive VA benefits, thus ensuring that hundreds of thousands of Americans who bravely served our country do not miss out on the payments that they were promised and that they need.”

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