A new bill would give prosecutors more time to investigate pandemic fraud

The congress responded to the pandemic by pumping billions of dollars in the economy with an alphabet soup of assistance programs: PPP, PUA, EIDL, EIPS and ERC. Fraud was endemic and the government has lost about $ 300 billion.

On Tuesday, the senator of the Republicans Joni Ernst and the representative Roger Williams presented a bill which would give the prosecutors of additional time to bring accusations of fraud two of these less known pandemic renunciations: the revitalization fund of the restaurant of 28.6 billion dollars and the revitalization fund of $ 14.6 billion on the rental operators.

Ernst’s office cited an initiate investigation into cases in 2024, which found that hundreds of millions of dollars have gone from the program of closed places to some of the most successful musicians in America, including Lil Wayne, Alice in Chains, Marshmello and Chris Brown.

If the bill is adopted, the calendar to pay costs would extend to 10 years. Usually prosecutors are five years old to bring charges.

“The fraudsters have been unleashed in the past four years, but there is a new sheriff in the city,” Ernst said in a statement. “These bad players have stolen billions of rescue for small workers who have trouble keeping their doors open. I make sure that each latest criminal is held responsible and that taxpayers are recovering their money.”

The bill comes three weeks after a federal guard dog estimated that nearly a third of the catering fund – $ 9 billion – has been poorly paid.

Legislators have attempted to protect pandemic aid funds. They put aside $ 25 million, against a law of 2.2 billions of dollars in pandemic in March 2020 to create the special general inspector for pandemic recovery, and put aside the tens of millions of dollars more for the IRS. They also gave prosecutors for an additional five years to bring accusations when people have fraudd two of the main assistance programs of the Small Business Administration.

The Ministry of Justice said in a report last April that more than 3,000 people had been charged with the abuse of more than a billion dollars in pandemic funds.

Kelly Loeffler, who was appointed by President Donald Trump to lead the SBA, said that the pursuit of fraud was one of his main priorities. She said the Biden administration has poorly reduced the agency’s loan programs guarantees.

As part of the Trump administration, the SBA said it would reduce its staff by 43%, bringing it to pre-countryic endowment levels. The agency’s inspector general, his internal guard dog, was one of several anti-Fraude officials fired by Trump.

An SBA representative did not respond to a request for comments.

The office of the Pandemic Inspector General, known as Sigpr, discreetly closed its doors after the Congress did not adopt legislation that extends its mandate. The office had less than 60 employees and its figures decreased as it approaches its closing date, according to one of its last monthly reports.

Nennette Day, a special retirement agent used in Sigpr, said that even if the time limits to carry accusations are extended, competing priorities and a loss of investigation dynamics could frustrate efforts to keep responsible pandemic criminals.

“All these cases must have moved to another agency, which I am going to tell you right now, from experience, almost always kills the business,” she said.

At the end of March, the member of the Congress Jason Smith, a Missouri republican who heads the Chamber Committee who prepares the bills of spending, urged the Senate to take measures on a measure which would give prosecutors more time to continue unemployed fraud. About $ 135 billion was lost to criminals, Smith said.

Do you have a tip? Learn more? Reach Jack Newsham by email (jnewsham@businessinsider.com) or via the signal (+ 1-314-971-1627). Do not use a work device.