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8 Free Government Programs Most Americans Never Use — Transcript

by This Guy Knows Stuff · 3,447 words · 579 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00All right, let's go. Number eight, the
0:02mail preview.
0:04We start with a low barrier, everyday
0:06utility that sounds like a minor
0:07superpower, but is actually just a
0:09byproduct of industrial efficiency.
0:12Every day, the United States Postal
0:14Service processes tens of millions of
0:16pieces of mail. To do this, they run
0:19letters through massive, high-speed
0:20automated sorting machines that take a
0:22digital photograph of the exterior of
0:24every single envelope to read the
0:26address and route it to the correct
0:28carrier. For decades, those images were
0:30just temporary operational data,
0:32vanishing into the system the moment the
0:34mail was sorted. Then, someone at the
0:36Postal Service had a surprisingly modern
0:38idea. What if they just let you see the
0:40photos? The result is USPS Informed
0:43Delivery. It is a completely free
0:46service that you sign up for on the
0:47official Postal Service website. Once
0:50you verify your identity and your
0:51address, the sorting machines quietly
0:53start working for you. Every morning,
0:55usually before you wake up, you receive
0:57an email containing grayscale images of
0:59the letter-sized mail scheduled to
1:01arrive in your physical mailbox later
1:03that afternoon.
1:04Psychologically, it feels like you have
1:06tapped into a government surveillance
1:07grid. You can sit in an office miles
1:09away and watch a utility bill, a wedding
1:12invitation, or a final notice from a
1:14collection agency slowly migrating
1:16toward your front door. It replaces the
1:18analog disappointment of walking to an
1:19empty mailbox with the digital certainty
1:21of knowing exactly what is coming. It
1:24also provides tracking updates for
1:25incoming packages in the exact same
1:27dashboard. Now, the reality check. The
1:30government is not opening your mail. The
1:32cameras only scan the exterior, address
1:35side of letter-sized envelopes. You will
1:37not see the contents. The machines do
1:39not scan the covers of magazines, heavy
1:41catalogs, or oddly shaped bulk mail.
1:44Occasionally, a piece of mail that was
1:46scanned in the morning will get delayed
1:48at the local facility and arrive the
1:50next day. It will not magically organize
1:52your life, but it removes one small
1:54persistent unknown from your daily
1:56routine. The infrastructure was already
1:58taking a picture of your mail. Informed
2:00delivery simply forwards it to your
2:02inbox.
2:03Number seven, the fourth grade loophole.
2:06Federal lands are expensive to maintain
2:08and accessing them is becoming expensive
2:10for visitors. A standard vehicle pass to
2:13enter major national parks like
2:14Yosemite, Yellowstone, or the Grand
2:16Canyon typically costs around $35 for a
2:19single week. If you want to visit
2:21multiple federal lands throughout the
2:22year, the government sells the America
2:24the Beautiful annual pass for $80.
2:27It is a perfectly reasonable price for
2:29funding the preservation of nature, but
2:31it can still be a barrier for a family
2:33trying to plan a summer vacation.
2:35Unless by some arbitrary stroke of
2:37bureaucratic brilliance, you happen to
2:39have a 10-year-old sitting in the
2:40backseat.
2:42The Every Kid Outdoors program is a
2:44federal initiative managed by the
2:45National Park Service, the Forest
2:48Service, and several other land
2:49management agencies.
2:51Recently extended through 2031 by the
2:54Explore Act, the premise is absurdly
2:56specific. The federal government gives
2:58every single fourth grader in the United
3:00States a free annual pass to hundreds of
3:02national parks, forests, wildlife
3:05refuges, and marine sanctuaries.
3:08Here is why this is brilliant. The pass
3:10does not just cover the fourth grader,
3:12it covers all children under 16 and up
3:14to three adults entering with them per
3:16vehicle.
3:17That means an entire family road trip
3:19can bypass the entrance fees purely
3:21because one specific child happens to be
3:23in one specific grade. If your child is
3:25in third grade, you pay $80.
3:28If your child is in fifth grade, you pay
3:30$80.
3:31But if your child is in the fourth
3:33grade, they are suddenly the most
3:34economically valuable passenger in your
3:36vehicle, acting as a VIP access card to
3:39the most beautiful landscapes on the
3:41continent. The catch is entirely
3:43logistical. The pass is strictly for
3:45fourth graders or their home school
3:46equivalents. It is valid only from
3:49September 1st to August 31st of their
3:51fourth grade year. You cannot just show
3:53up at the gate and claim you have a
3:5410-year-old. You must go to the Every
3:56Kid Outdoors website, have the child
3:58complete a very brief educational
4:00activity, print out a paper voucher, and
4:03hand that physical paper to a park
4:05ranger at the gate, who will then
4:06exchange it for a plastic card. It only
4:09covers entrance fees. It does not cover
4:11camping reservations, boat rentals, or
4:14the overpriced hot dogs at the
4:15concession stand.
4:17But as a mechanism for forcing families
4:19to go outside, it is an $80 government
4:22gift waiting for a printer.
4:25Number six, the state treasury stash.
4:28We have been deeply, thoroughly trained
4:30to recognize phishing scams.
4:32If you receive an email from an unknown
4:34sender telling you that there is a large
4:36sum of abandoned money legally sitting
4:38in an account waiting for you to claim
4:39it, and all you have to do is type in
4:41your social security number, your modern
4:43survival instinct immediately identifies
4:46it as a trap. The problem is that state
4:48governments are legally hoarding
4:49billions of dollars in forgotten money,
4:51and the official process to claim it
4:53sounds exactly like a scam. When a
4:55business owes you money but cannot find
4:57you, they cannot simply keep the cash.
5:00If you abandon a bank account, forget to
5:01cash a final paycheck from an old job,
5:04leave a deposit with a utility company
5:06after moving, or fail to claim an
5:08insurance payout, those funds eventually
5:10enter a legal process called
5:12escheatment. The business is required by
5:14law to hand that money over to the state
5:16treasury. The state then holds the money
5:18in a massive custodial vault, waiting
5:20indefinitely for the rightful owner to
5:22step forward.
5:23Because people move across state lines,
5:25searching 50 different treasury websites
5:27is exhausting. So, the National
5:30Association of Unclaimed Property
5:31Administrators backs a central
5:33aggregated portal called
5:34missingmoney.com.
5:36You type in your name and previous
5:38addresses, and it searches the
5:40participating state databases
5:41simultaneously.
5:43The psychological barrier is immense.
5:46People ignore this database because the
5:48domain ends in a dot com, the premise
5:50sounds too good to be true, and claiming
5:52the money requires handing over proof of
5:54identity. They assume it is a trap to
5:56steal their data, leaving their own
5:58actual money quietly rotting in a
6:00bureaucratic ledger.
6:02The reality check is that this is not a
6:04slot machine.
6:05If you find money, you do not just click
6:07a button and receive a direct deposit 10
6:09seconds later. You are dealing with
6:11state government accounting departments.
6:13You will have to fill out a claim form,
6:15upload a photo of your driver's license,
6:17provide proof that you previously lived
6:19at the address associated with the
6:21funds, and sometimes get a document
6:23notarized. The process can take weeks or
6:25months to clear. You are not going to
6:27fund your retirement with a forgotten
6:29$40 water bill deposit, but the money is
6:32real, the database is legitimate, and
6:34searching it costs you nothing but 3
6:36minutes of your time.
6:38Number five, the anti-scam advisors.
6:41There is an entire shadow industry built
6:43on financial panic. If you are facing
6:45foreclosure, struggling with
6:47overwhelming credit card debt, or trying
6:49to buy a house with a bruised credit
6:51score, you will inevitably encounter the
6:53predators. Late-night television, social
6:56media ads, and aggressive radio
6:57commercials are filled with private
6:59credit repair companies and foreclosure
7:02rescue services. They charge massive
7:04upfront fees, often thousands of
7:06dollars, promising to magically erase
7:08your debt, stop a bank from taking your
7:10home, or rewrite your financial history.
7:14In almost every case, they are charging
7:16you a premium to do exactly what the
7:17federal government provides for free.
7:20The Department of Housing and Urban
7:21Development funds a network of
7:23HUD-approved housing counseling agencies
7:25across the country. These are federally
7:28certified experts who have passed a HUD
7:30competency exam. They are required to
7:32provide unbiased expert advice to
7:34renters, prospective home buyers, and
7:37homeowners facing crisis.
7:39If you want to buy a house, they will
7:41review your credit report, help you
7:43build a budget, explain the different
7:45types of mortgages, and tell you exactly
7:47what a lender will look for.
7:49If you are facing foreclosure, they will
7:51mediate with your mortgage servicer,
7:53explain forbearance options, and help
7:56you navigate the highly complex loss
7:58mitigation process. They do this without
8:00trying to sell you a loan, without
8:02charging a $2,000 retainer, and without
8:04making impossible promises.
8:07The tragic reality is that people ignore
8:09these certified professionals because
8:11the HUD counselors do not use flashy
8:13marketing.
8:14They do not promise overnight miracles.
8:17If your debt is legitimate, a HUD
8:19counselor cannot wave a wand and make it
8:20disappear.
8:22They will sit down with you, look at the
8:23brutal mathematics of your income versus
8:25your obligations, and help you build a
8:27realistic, painful, but survivable plan.
8:31You have to verify the agency through
8:33the official Consumer Financial
8:34Protection Bureau or HUD directory
8:37because the private scams often use
8:38names that sound vaguely governmental.
8:41The government experts are waiting in a
8:42quiet office down the street. You just
8:44have to choose them over the loud
8:46commercial promising you a shortcut that
8:47doesn't exist. Number four, the tax prep
8:50bypass.
8:52For decades, the American tax system has
8:54operated on a deeply weird premise. The
8:57government already knows exactly how
8:58much money you made, but it forces you
9:00to figure it out yourself, and if you
9:02get the math wrong, you get penalized.
9:05This arrangement birthed a
9:06multi-billion-dollar private tax
9:08preparation industry that spends heavily
9:10on lobbying to ensure the system stays
9:12complicated, forcing you to buy their
9:14software just to tell the IRS what the
9:16IRS already knows.
9:18There was an old compromise called IRS
9:20Free File, but it was essentially a
9:22funnel. It routed you to third-party
9:25corporate software that often found
9:27clever ways to upsell you, and it was
9:29strictly capped for people making under
9:30roughly $79,000 a year.
9:33Finally, the federal government built a
9:35bypass. It is called IRS Direct File.
9:39Piloted in 2024 and expanding to 24
9:42participating states for the 2025 and
9:452026 tax seasons, Direct File is a free
9:49online tool built by the government to
9:51file your federal tax returns directly
9:53with the IRS. It cuts out the middle men
9:55entirely. There are no hidden fees at
9:57the end, no desperate pop-up ads begging
10:00you to upgrade to the premium package to
10:01claim a standard deduction, and most
10:03importantly, it has no income limits.
10:06Whether you make $30,000 or $300,000,
10:10if your tax situation fits the software,
10:12you can use it for free.
10:14The reason people ignore it is brand
10:16loyalty driven by anxiety. We have been
10:18conditioned to trust private software
10:20with cartoon graphics and gamified
10:22progress bars more than the actual tax
10:24agency. People assume that if the
10:26software is free and built by the
10:27government, it must be a trap designed
10:29to trigger an audit.
10:31Here is the reality check. Direct File
10:33is essentially a calculator that talks
10:35directly to the Treasury. However, it is
10:37strictly for simple tax situations. If
10:40you have basic W-2 income, standard 1099
10:43interest, claim the standard deduction,
10:46and use basic credits like the child tax
10:48credit, it works perfectly. If you run a
10:50small business, have complex gig economy
10:53income, itemize your deductions, or
10:56trade cryptocurrency, the system cannot
10:58handle your return yet. Furthermore, it
11:01only processes federal taxes. Once you
11:04finish, it hands you off to a state-run
11:06tool to finish your state return. It is
11:08not a complete replacement for a CPA,
11:11but for millions of Americans with
11:12straightforward jobs, it is a way to
11:15stop paying a corporation $150 a year
11:18for the privilege of basic arithmetic.
11:21Number three,
11:22the Federal Research Assistance.
11:24The Library of Congress is the largest
11:26library in the world holding millions of
11:28books, recordings, photographs,
11:30newspapers, and manuscripts. Most people
11:33view it as a monument, a beautiful
11:35building in Washington, D.C. where
11:37historical documents are kept under
11:38glass. They treat it like a museum.
11:41It is not a museum. It is an active,
11:44functioning library, and you have the
11:45right to ask it questions.
11:47Through a program called Ask a
11:49Librarian, anyone with an internet
11:51connection can essentially commission a
11:53federal researcher to find information
11:55for them for free. The Library of
11:57Congress employs highly educated subject
12:00matter specialists in areas like
12:01genealogy, local history, business,
12:05science, and international law. If you
12:08are trying to track down an obscure
12:10historical record, find primary sources
12:12for a complex project, locate a
12:15forgotten patent, or navigate a mountain
12:17of census data, you do not have to rely
12:20on the first page of Google.
12:22You can submit a question online
12:23directly to the people who manage the
12:25archives.
12:26People never use this because it feels
12:28intimidating. It feels inappropriate to
12:30bother a federal archivist because you
12:32want to know what the weather was like
12:34in a specific town in 1912, or because
12:36you are trying to verify a weird
12:38historical rumor your grandfather told
12:40you. But that is exactly what they are
12:41there for.
12:43The caveat is that this is a research
12:44assistance program, not a concierge
12:46service. You are dealing with
12:48professionals. They will not do your
12:50high school homework for you. They will
12:52not provide legal or medical advice.
12:54They will not spend 3 weeks writing a
12:56biography on your behalf. If you ask a
12:58broad, lazy question like, "Tell me
13:00about the Civil War." they will send you
13:02a link to a generic reading list. But if
13:05you ask a highly specific, targeted
13:07question about a primary source you
13:09cannot locate, they will dig into the
13:11largest repository of human knowledge on
13:13Earth, find the specific microfilm or
13:15document, and point you exactly to where
13:18the answer lives.
13:19It takes time, sometimes days or weeks
13:21to get a response, but it is the
13:23difference between searching the
13:24internet and consulting the archive.
13:27Number two, the free executive board.
13:30If you want to start a business today,
13:32the internet is waiting to sell you a
13:33fantasy.
13:34Social media is choked with business
13:36coaches, lifestyle gurus, and
13:39self-proclaimed masterminds who will
13:41charge you $5,000 for a 6-week online
13:43course that consists mostly of
13:45motivational quotes and basic marketing
13:47templates.
13:49They sell the illusion of insider
13:50knowledge.
13:51Meanwhile, the Small Business
13:53Administration quietly funds an actual
13:55network of insiders who will talk to you
13:57for $0.
13:58It is called SCORE. It is a nonprofit
14:01resource partner of the SBA consisting
14:03of over 10,000 volunteer business
14:05mentors. These are not 22-year-old
14:08influencers renting sports cars for a
14:10photoshoot. These are retired corporate
14:12executives, former CEOs, seasoned
14:15entrepreneurs, and industry veterans who
14:18have successfully navigated supply
14:20chains, managed human resources, secured
14:23commercial financing, and survived
14:25economic downturns.
14:27You go to the SCORE website, enter your
14:29zip code and your industry, and you can
14:31request a mentor.
14:33They will provide free, confidential,
14:35one-on-one business consulting via video
14:38call, phone, or in person.
14:40You can show them your business plan,
14:42and they will look at your financial
14:43projections and calmly explain why your
14:45profit margins make no mathematical
14:47sense before you drain your savings
14:49account.
14:50People ignore SCORE because they assume
14:52free advice is worthless advice.
14:55They believe that if they pay $5,000 to
14:57a guru, they are buying a guarantee of
14:59success, whereas a free government
15:01program must be meant for someone else.
15:04The reality check is that SCORE requires
15:06effort. You are not buying a shortcut.
15:09You have to be proactive. You must show
15:11up to the meeting prepared with specific
15:13questions and a willingness to accept
15:14harsh, structural criticism of your
15:16ideas.
15:18Furthermore, the quality of the advice
15:20is highly dependent on the specific
15:22mentor you match with. An executive who
15:24ran a manufacturing plant in the 1990s
15:27might not be the best person to advise
15:29you on a modern digital marketing
15:30strategy. You may have to politely
15:32request a different mentor to find
15:34someone whose background aligns with
15:35your exact problem, but if you are
15:37willing to do the work, the SBA has
15:39essentially assembled a free board of
15:41directors waiting to take your call.
15:43Number one, the shadow scholarship. This
15:46is the heavy hitter, the program with
15:48the most direct life-altering financial
15:50value, and the one hidden behind the
15:52thickest wall of bureaucracy.
15:54When an American loses their job or
15:57realizes their current industry is
15:58dying, the immediate panic is followed
16:01by a predictable reflex. They need new
16:03skills. They need a certification, a
16:06commercial driver's license, an IT
16:08credential, or nursing training. Because
16:10we live in a society built on debt, the
16:12default assumption is that you must
16:14borrow money to pay for that training.
16:16You take out a private student loan,
16:18enroll in a program, and hope the future
16:20salary covers the monthly payments.
16:23Most people never realize that the
16:24federal government already allocated
16:26billions of dollars to pay for exactly
16:28that, and they do not want the money
16:30back.
16:31Under the Workforce Innovation and
16:33Opportunity Act, WIOA,
16:35the Department of Labor distributes
16:37massive block grants to state
16:39governments. The states then route this
16:41money to local physical offices, usually
16:44called American Job Centers or Career
16:47One-Stop Centers.
16:49A significant portion of this money is
16:50strictly designated for job retraining
16:52grants for dislocated workers, people
16:55who have been laid off, or low-income
16:58adults who need to transition into
16:59high-demand fields.
17:01This is not a loan. It is grant money
17:03paid directly from the workforce agency
17:06to an approved training provider. It can
17:08cover tuition for trade schools,
17:10community college certificates,
17:12equipment, and sometimes even the cost
17:14of testing.
17:16So, why does almost no one use it?
17:18Because accessing it feels like a
17:19part-time job.
17:21You cannot just log onto a website,
17:23click a few buttons, and get a check.
17:25You have to physically go to the local
17:26American Job Center, which usually looks
17:28like a drab DMV waiting room. You have
17:31to meet with a case worker.
17:33You have to prove you are a dislocated
17:35worker by showing your unemployment
17:36records or layoff notices. You have to
17:38take basic math and reading aptitude
17:40tests to prove you can handle the
17:42coursework.
17:43You have to research the local job
17:44market to prove that the training you
17:46want will actually lead to a job. You
17:48have to build a file, jump through the
17:50bureaucratic hoops, and wait weeks for a
17:52committee to approve your funding.
17:54Psychologically, people cannot handle
17:56the friction.
17:57We have been trained by modern
17:58technology that if something takes more
18:00than three clicks, it is broken. People
18:02would literally rather go online, click
18:05a brightly colored apply for financing
18:06button, and sign away $10,000 in
18:09high-interest private debt than sit in a
18:11fluorescent-lit county office with a
18:13clipboard for 3 weeks to get the exact
18:15same education paid for by the federal
18:17government. The reality check is brutal
18:19but necessary. WIOA grants are not
18:22unlimited. Local offices run out of
18:24funding toward the end of their fiscal
18:25cycles. The grants will not pay for a
18:274-year philosophy degree. They are
18:29strictly limited to short-term training
18:31for in-demand local occupations like
18:33healthcare, logistics, and technology.
18:36The process is slow, the paperwork is
18:38annoying, and the case workers are often
18:40overwhelmed.
18:41But if you are willing to navigate the
18:43friction, if you are willing to treat
18:45the bureaucracy as the entrance exam,
18:47there is a shadow scholarship waiting on
18:49the other side that can fundamentally
18:51reset your career without costing you a
18:53single dollar.
18:55The pattern running through every single
18:56one of these programs is the psychology
18:58of price. We are trained to believe that
19:00value is entirely determined by the
19:02price tag. If an application costs a
19:04monthly subscription, we trust it. If a
19:07private consultant charges a retainer,
19:09we respect their authority. If a
19:11university demands taking on a decade of
19:13debt, we view it as a necessary
19:15investment. But when the exact same
19:17utility, expertise, or funding is
19:20offered for $0, our immediate instinct
19:23is to look for the trap.
19:24We assume it must be broken, outdated,
19:27or meant for someone else.
19:29The truth is, these programs are not
19:31traps.
19:32They are just the rare moments when the
19:34infrastructure you already pay for with
19:36your taxes actually turns around and
19:38hands something directly back to you.
19:40The only thing you have to do is drop
19:42the assumption that a price tag of zero
19:44means a value of nothing.
19:46That's all for today. I'll be making
19:48similar videos in the future. Subscribe
19:50to see them.

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