Now I See The Problem

My husband got a refund check in the mail yesterday.  It happens. I am the person who pays the bills in the house, and occasionally my brain transposes numbers.   I never claimed to be a math wizard.

Businesses are very anal about knowing how much money they have. They have entire squadrons of accountants who do nothing but make sure that all accounts balance to the hundredth penny.  When someone overpays, a check must be printed on very special paper, with very special printer ink, and mailed to the person receiving the refund.

Very special check paper costs money.

Very special printer ink costs money. Probably way more money than the very special paper, even with a bulk discount.

Mailing envelopes, to mail the check, cost money.

Stamps, to mail the check, cost money.

All that effort on the part of a business, just to balance their accounts.  My estimate as to the total cost to send us our refund is about a dollar. It might be more. Have I mentioned that I am not a math wiz?

Know how much our refund check was for?  Fourteen cents. 

Does that sound kind of silly? It does to me. Surely there was a more cost effective way to do this?

When companies come running to the federal government, hat in hand, and whine about not being able to stay solvent in these horrible economic times, I want everyone to think about this.  If a private corporation, the pinnacle of capitalism, can't manage their costs better than spending a dollar on a fourteen cent refund, why do we expect the federal government to do so?