Lehigh Times

The Pennsylvania Treasury Department will be more secure now that the state’s General Assembly approved the 2022-23 state budget which included a fiscal code amendment intended to help stop fraud.

According to a press release by on July 12, Act 54 of 2022 authorizes the Pennsylvania Treasury to require implementing electronic payment security protocols called the Account Verification System (AVS). Treasurer Stacy Garrity’s release called it a “significant step forward” in both spotting and preventing fraud in how tax dollars are spent.

“This is a powerful new tool in the never-ending fight against identity thieves and other criminals,” Garrity said. “States have been targeted by fraudsters throughout the pandemic. The Pennsylvania Treasury Department works around the clock to ensure that taxpayer money is spent appropriately and doesn’t fall into the hands of criminals. I want to thank the General Assembly and the Governor for including this language in the Fiscal Code to improve payment security statewide.”

Garrity thanked Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, House Speaker Brian Cutler, Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff, Senate Appropriations Chairman Pat Browne and House Appropriations Chairman Stan Saylor.

“In particular, I spoke to Senator Corman and Representative Saylor often over the past few weeks,” Garrity said. “I also reached out to Governor Wolf directly, and I thank him for his support of this important initiative. Criminals trying to steal money from hardworking taxpayers never stop – and neither will we. This is a great step forward to increase our already robust security measures.”

Corman said that taxpayers deserve peace of mind in knowing that funds are being protected against fraud and abuse.

“This new tool will provide a critical layer of protection to support our shared goal of safeguarding taxpayer dollars,” Corman said. “I appreciate Treasurer Garrity’s leadership in advocating for this new system to prevent financial crimes against our Commonwealth.”

Representative Saylor praised the work of Treasurer Garrity, saying that he appreciates her leadership in working to protect against people who attempt to steal money from Pennsylvania taxpayers.

“Unfortunately, the number of criminals seeking to defraud taxpayers has been on the rise throughout the country,” Representative Saylor said. “As leaders, our job is to protect taxpayer dollars and ensure that they are used for appropriate purposes. Treasurer Garrity gets that.”

The following state agencies have either implemented or will be implementing AVS soon: The Department of Revenue, the Office of Administration, the Liquor Control Board and the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. The U.S. Department of the Treasury uses AVS for accounts payable, as well.

The AVS uses bank account information and identity data fields to confirm that a legitimate payment is occurring. The Treasury is developing a list of electronic payment security vendors that are “qualified, experienced and capable of providing such services. Within 18 months of the law being in effect, all boards, commissions and agencies that the Treasury makes payments will choose a vendor to use to pay. This list of approved vendors will be updated by the Pennsylvania Treasury every two years."

Through AVS, the payment is normally immediately processed. If issues are identified the AVS responds with coded indicators to stop the payment or work to find more information. This leads to the agency that originated the payment determining if it is fraudulent or if there is need for information, such as a bank account number, to be corrected.