Prediction: No One Will Lose Their Job Over This

I'm not activating the card until I'm ready
to spend the entire amount immediately.

$20 billion was stolen from California unemployment COVID funds just two years ago, and history is repeating itself. Thieves are draining the funds loaded onto VISA cards mailed to taxpayers under the Middle Class Tax Refund.

The state began issuing payments ranging from $200 to $1,050 to most California residents in late October. State lawmakers authorized the payments, which are not technically tax refunds, to offset inflation.

State residents are eligible if they filed a 2020 state tax return and meet income limits. People who filed their 2020 return electronically and had a state tax refund directly deposited into a bank account were the first to get refunds; they were directly deposited into the same bank account.

Everyone else received prepaid debit cards. As of last week, the state had issued about 7.2 million direct deposits and 9.4 million debit cards totaling almost $9.1 billion. Most people will have received them by the end of January.

There are anecdotal reports that some cards were drained before they were activated. Others seem to be emptied after. There's nothing to be done in the former instance, but if the crooks need the card to be activated, then I will hold off doing so until a few minutes before I activate it, then spend the entire amount in one fell swoop. Shrinking the exposure window might help.

It's unclear how much, if any, of the money will be on the card when it comes time to claim it. One thing is, however, certain. No one will lose their job over this debacle.