President Joe Biden signed a pair of bills Friday that will give the Justice Department more time to investigate and prosecute people accused of fraudulently collecting government payments aimed at helping small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What You Need To Know
- President Joe Biden signed a pair of bills Friday that will give the Justice Department more time to investigate and prosecute people accused of fraudulently collecting government payments aimed at helping small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic
- The bills, which recently passed Congress with vast bipartisan support, establish 10-year statutes of limitations for criminal charges and civil enforcement
- In October 2020, the Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General identified $78.1 billion in potentially fraudulent EIDL loans and grants paid to ineligible entities and another $6.7 billion in loans and grants linked to alleged identity theft
- And last year, the agency watchdog identified more than 70,000 PPP loans totaling over $4.6 billion that were potentially fraudulent
The PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) and Bank Fraud Enforcement Act and the COVID-19 EIDL (Economic Injury Disaster Loan) Fraud Statute of Limitations Act establish 10-year statutes of limitations for criminal charges and civil enforcement. Both bills recently passed Congress with vast bipartisan support.
“American people deserve to know that their tax dollars are being spent as intended,” Biden…
