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August 9, 2006
Indiana plans to open a customer service call center here to help unemployment insurance recipients learn to use new Visa debit cards to receive their benefits.
The state said Wednesday it plans to begin issuing the cards in place of unemployment checks by the end of the year, saving a projected $1.8 million annually by discontinuing printing and mailing of weekly unemployment checks.
The Department of Workforce Development is looking for a location in Gas City, just south of Marion and about 50 miles northeast of Indianapolis, for a call center that would create about 10 jobs.
Debit card users will have access to their funds at all banks and ATMs in the state, and will be able to redeem their debit cards for no fee at a Visa bank or at a network of 600 ATM machines once per deposit.
In addition, recipients will be able redeem their cards with no charges or fees through point-of-sale transactions at merchants who accept Visa cards. The network of free ATM transactions includes those operated by National City, Old National, 7-Eleven, Alliance One Bank and Money Pass.
The network of Visa banks for free teller transactions includes more than 95 percent of the banks in Indiana.
The department has awarded Affiliated Computer Services Inc. a contract to manage the new system. Unlike a typical state contract, the state will pay ACS nothing to offer the debit card program.
ACS, which will operate the call center, will realize its profits through merchant and transaction fees commonly associated with credit and debit card programs. ACS also is part of a team led by IBM Corp. that is negotiating to take over the application process for food stamps and other welfare benefits in Indiana.
In 2005, 248,077 individuals received more than 3 million payments totaling $654 million under the unemployment insurance program. The estimated average payment per claimant per week in 2005 was $274.
Shares of ACS fell $1.09, or 2.2 percent, to close at $49.11 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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