Cape News

Federal law enforcement agencies are set to receive extended support in pursuing those responsible for stealing an estimated $100 to $135 billion in unemployment insurance benefits during the pandemic. This development follows the introduction of new legislation by Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, representing Missouri's 8th district, alongside all 25 Republican Members of the Committee.

The proposed bill, known as the Pandemic Unemployment Fraud Enforcement Act (H.R. 1156), seeks to extend the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution and civil enforcement actions related to pandemic unemployment programs from five years to ten years. Under current regulations, this statute is set to expire on March 27, 2025, after which Congress cannot retroactively alter it.

Chairman Smith emphasized the urgency of this legislative action, stating: “Failure to extend this statute of limitations would mean that the thousands of criminals and international criminal organizations that perpetrated the greatest theft of American taxpayer dollars in history will never be brought to justice." He further highlighted that without such measures, "hundreds of billions of dollars – in one estimate as much as $400 billion – will be lost forever."

The Government Accountability Office has reported significant losses due to fraud during the pandemic, with estimates ranging from $100 billion up to $135 billion. Other projections suggest losses could reach as high as $400 billion. So far, only about $5 billion has been recovered.

In terms of legal actions taken against these fraudulent activities, the Department of Justice COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force has charged over 600 criminal cases related to unemployment insurance fraud with associated losses exceeding $300 million. Additionally, there are currently 1,648 open criminal matters identified but not yet charged.

The Department of Labor also reports a significant number of unresolved issues with at least 157,000 open UI fraud hotline complaints and more than 1,000 ongoing field investigations.

This legislative move follows a similar extension made by Congress in 2022 for fraud involving Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans statutes.