Provincial government living expenses checks are issued to people who died after filing their 2021 tax return (iStock)
An independent politician in Newfoundland and Labrador says he has received calls from residents who have received checks for living expenses of spouses who recently died.
Mount Pearl-Southlands MHA Paul Lane told CBC News on Friday that so far he has heard from five people who have received checks issued to a deceased spouse.
“I guess what’s happening is they’re just looking at 2021 [tax] returns, and if you’ve filed, you’ll get a check in the mail,” Lane said. “Of course, between then and now, obviously, people can die.”
On Oct. 5, the Liberal government announced it would issue a one-time relief check of up to $500 to residents who turned 18 by Dec. 31 and who filed a 2021 tax return with income of $125,000 or less. Checks started being sent out earlier this month.
So far, the government says 110,000 checks have been processed.
Lane said he believes the rush to meet the government’s commitment to have checks in people’s hands before Christmas is likely why there have been hiccups in the plan. He said he thinks there will be more problems as inspections continue.
“I suspect there will probably be people who don’t get their checks that they should, as an example, and checks go to the wrong addresses and things like that,” he said. “But that’s the thing that happens, I guess, when you don’t have all your ducks in a row unnecessarily before you start a program.”
Paul Lane, independent MHA for Mount Pearl-Southlands, says he believes other issues will arise when the government introduces their cost of living cheques. (Patrick Butler/Radio-Canada)
The province said checks will be mailed to eligible residents based on their address registered with the Canada Revenue Agency as of June this year.
But Jim Dean, interim leader of the provincial NDP, wonders why there isn’t a direct deposit option.
In a media release released Friday, the NDP pointed to Prince Edward Island, which operates a similar program through the Canada Revenue Agency and uses direct deposit.
The NDP said they are getting calls from people trying to make sure their mailing address is up to date and some seniors should make plans to sign checks over to someone they trust to make the deposit on their behalf.
“If the priority was to get these funds to people effectively, the logistics would have to be worked out with the Canada Revenue Agency to send them with the quarterly GST/HST payments in October,” Dean said in a statement Friday.
“These funds will be in the accounts of people registered with the CRA, and we could focus resources to send physical checks to the rest.”
The NDP said it has asked the Liberal Party why direct deposit is not being used in the CRA. An email from the Treasury to the opposition party said: “Each person would have to apply individually, which creates barriers to sending cheques.”
But the NDP said the PEI government recently announced an application was not needed.
“If these checks are meant to provide relief, get them out in the most efficient way possible, don’t add steps,” Dean said.
In an email to CBC News, Treasury spokeswoman Victoria Barber said the government is unable to determine who died after filing 2021 taxes, and checks sent to dead people should not be returned.
“In cases where payments are made to a deceased person, they must be deposited by the administrator or executor of the estate, in accordance with their authority,” she wrote.
Lane said he has been directing residents to the department’s help line and email address if they have concerns.
“I don’t want to give people false information or bad advice, frankly, and I’m not sure if the intention would be whether the checks would go with the estate,” he said.
“But I don’t want to be the one to officially tell someone that and then they do it and get themselves in trouble down the line.”
Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
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