Navigating the Complexities of Payment Processing in Government Institutions

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Constituents demand seamless online experiences, and that extends to payments they make to government agencies. Discover the challenges associated with collecting government payments, and explore government payment solutions that will help streamline your operations.

6 Challenges of Government Payments

When setting up a payment processing solution, government organizations must manage compliance, security, system integration and more—all while making the system easy to use. As a result, they might face the following challenges:

1. Protecting Constituents From Fraud

There are two significant concerns when it comes to security for government organizations collecting payments—losing funds and losing trust.

First, there’s the impact on your financials. The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) reports that 80% of organizations were targets of fraud in 2023, up 15 percentage points from 2022. Additionally, around 30% of the organizations that lost money due to fraud were unable to recover any of the funds.

Further, there’s the impact on your constituents. In 2023, data breaches impacted more than 353 million people. To ensure your constituents feel comfortable paying taxes, penalties or other fees online, you must prioritize cybersecurity. Here’s how:

  • Require two-factor authentication (2FA) or biometric authentication to better secure constituents’ accounts.
  • Replace sensitive data, such as credit card numbers, with randomly generated tokens.
  • Disguise card data during payment transmission.
  • Set up hosted payment pages to ensure your organization doesn’t hold onto data unnecessarily.

2. Adhering to Compliance Standards

Meeting compliance standards keeps data safe. One of the most significant is the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS), which applies to any organization that collects cardholder data. You can complete your own compliance assessment on the PCI website, validate your compliance through a third-party Qualified Security Processor (QSA), or enroll in a PCI-DSS compliance program.

Federal agencies that collect cardholder information must also comply with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidelines on personally identifiable information (PII). Maintaining compliance builds trust with constituents and reduces the risk of data breaches and other security threats.

3. Keeping Track of Data

Given the volume of transactions, tracking payment data can be challenging. With a reliable payment processing solution, your organization can access transaction breakdowns and insights into payment methods. You can analyze general data or dive deeper into the specifics by looking at specific transactions.

4. Accepting Multiple Types of Payments

Your platform should allow you to accept multiple types of online payments, including:

Multiple payment options give constituents more flexibility and allow them to make convenient payments. You can also expand your offerings with multichannel payment processing, including:

  • IVR solutions: Accept payments with a pay-by-phone interactive voice response (IVR) solution. An IVR answering service lets you accept payments 24/7 and is more secure than live agents transcribing card numbers and other payment data over the phone.
  • In-person solutions: Some constituents may prefer making in-person payments or you may need to accept payments at a government office. It’s key that you offer an in-person payment solution that integrates with your digital payment options, making payment on any channel easy.

5. Scaling According to Future Needs

The ideal payment processing solution handles a high number of transactions without disruptions or delays. For example, local governments often see a spike in payments during tax season, and their payment processing solution must be able to scale to meet these inflated annual demands. Additionally, fast-growing municipalities should be able to meet their new residents’ needs.

6. Integrating With Existing Systems

Many government organizations use complex legacy systems or software solutions, which can make integrating payment solutions more difficult. Look for a platform that can integrate with your organization’s current web interface to streamline payments for constituents and simplify operations for you.

Benefits of Digital Government Payments

Reliable digital solutions—such as ACH and credit card processing for government agencies—can streamline your operations, keep constituent data safe and scale according to your future needs. Here are more benefits of implementing digital payment solutions:

  • Expand revenue streams: With online and IVR payment options, your organization can accommodate people who don’t have immediate access to funds by allowing them to pay via credit card.
  • Reduce late payments: Giving constituents more ways to pay may reduce the likelihood of late payments.
  • Receive payments quickly: With a simplified payment processing solution, you can receive payments quickly, which improves cash flow.
  • Receive more data: Gain access to transactional data and identify trends that guide your organization.
  • Devote fewer human resources to processing: With more streamlined operations, your personnel can focus on high-value government initiatives rather than spending excessive time on manual accounting and reconciliations.
  • Simplify tracking: Credit card and ACH processing for government payments provide an easy-to-access payment record that simplifies tracking efforts.
  • Provide an easy payment solution for tourist locations: If your city frequently welcomes international tourists, a digital government payment solution means they will not have to carry local currency and can easily pay for parking or other amenities with a card.
  • Allow constituents to set up automatic payments: Automating government payments gives constituents peace of mind that they will not miss a personal income tax payment, business tax payment or other regular payment.
  • Increase trust with constituents: A convenient, secure and frictionless payment experience increases constituent satisfaction and may increase their confidence in your organization.

How CSG Forte Helps Streamline Government Payments

CSG Forte understands how challenging government payments can be to manage. Our government payment platform enables your organization to manage payments swiftly, whether you’re dealing with local utility payments, state taxes or grant payments.

With our solution, you can accept debit card, credit card, ACH and digital wallet payments. We also allow you to charge constituents a convenience fee to recoup the cost of merchant fees, which you must pay every time an individual pays via a credit or debit card.

You can also explore IVR payment options to provide the utmost convenience for your constituents. Our payment platform is Level 1 PCI-compliant, with features like tokenization and encryption to keep payment data secure and increase trust with your constituents. If you want to integrate your new payment platform with your existing web interface, you can work your way toward successful implementation yourself or receive support from a dedicated integration specialist.

To see how CSG has already helped other government organizations, explore case studies from Lucas County, Ohio, and Kinston, North Carolina.

Contact CSG Forte to Learn More About Forte for Payment Processing

CSG Forte has decades of experience assisting over 81,000 merchants across North America. With our solution, you can reduce administrative burden and rely on a customizable platform that prioritizes security and user-friendliness.

Leave the complexity to us. For more information on implementing CSG Forte at your government organization, talk to a CSG expert today!