Rep. Fong on Voting to Pass Pandemic Unemployment Fraud Enforcement Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, Congressman Vince Fong (CA-20) voted to pass the bipartisan H.R. 1156, the Pandemic Unemployment Fraud Enforcement Act, which amends the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to extend the statute of limitations for prosecuting fraud in pandemic unemployment insurance programs: 

“COVID-era unemployment insurance programs were exploited by fraudsters and criminal organizations who stole more than $100 billion in taxpayer dollars. In California alone, there is an estimated $18.7 billion in fraud with that number likely even higher. With less than 4% of those funds recovered, we need to ensure federal law enforcement has the time to pursue justice by extending the statute of limitations for these cases. This legislation is critical to holding fraudsters accountable, recovering stolen funds, and protecting the integrity of government assistance programs,” Rep. Fong (CA-20) said.

H.R. 1156 extends, from five years to 10 years, the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution and civil enforcement actions related to fraudulent claims funded by federal pandemic unemployment programs created in the CARES Act. This extension allows federal law enforcement to continue prosecuting criminals and recover billions in taxpayer dollars lost to fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

For more information, please visit fong.house.gov.

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