President Joe Biden outlined heightened efforts to crack down on pandemic aid fraudsters in his first State of the Union address Tuesday.
BIDEN PANDEMIC APPROVAL RATINGS UNDERWATER AHEAD OF STATE OF THE UNION
The Department of Justice’s COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force will expand to appoint a chief prosecutor who will be able to lead teams of specialized prosecutors to target large-scale identity thieves.
“These strike force teams will also use state-of-the-art data analytics tools to connect the dots on identity theft and other complex fraud schemes committed across state lines or transnationally, as well as investigate major cases of criminal fraud in programs like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Unemployment Insurance (UI),” a readout from the White House said.
Members of Congress have warned that fraud related to the expanded unemployment benefits could cost hundreds of billions of dollars.
Under the chief prosecutor, the task force will continue to combat fraud and identity theft in pandemic relief programs such as the Paycheck Protection Program, which granted forgivable loans to small businesses in order for them to keep employees during the height of the pandemic.
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“The DOJ has already successfully prosecuted scores of cases where individuals fraudulently obtained loans from PPP meant for small businesses facing threats of layoffs and closure due to the pandemic, and where identity thieves stole unemployment insurance benefits meant for those who lost their jobs through no fault of their own,” the White House said in a statement.
The administration will also direct the DOJ to “heighten the penalties for criminals who commit egregious pandemic fraud.”
