NASHVILLE, TENN. – With unemployment fraud leaving taxpayers on the hook for roughly $163 billion, and only slightly more than $4 billion recovered, Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), and Rob Portman (R-Ohio), along with their fellow Senate Republicans, are introducing legislation to recover funds from unchecked unemployment fraud and provide incentives for States to recover fraudulent payments.

The “Chase COVID Unemployment Fraud Act of 2022” would jumpstart efforts to claw back federal funds and pursue recovery of fraudulent payments by ensuring aggressive identification, investigation and prosecution of criminal fraud in pandemic unemployment programs. 

In addition to Senators Blackburn, Crapo, and Portman, the bill is co-sponsored by Senators Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), John Kennedy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), John Thune (R-S.D.), and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.). Republican Leaders in the House, led by House Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-Texas), introduced identical legislation on June 9, 2022.

“Fraudulent unemployment claims have cost taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Senator Blackburn. “The big government spending spree made it too easy for fraudsters to steal money from hardworking taxpayers by claiming unemployment benefits. This legislation would give states the tools to undo the damage they caused and prevent others from abusing the system in the future.” 

“The Administration needs to step up and join us in detecting and preventing the massive fraud in federal unemployment insurance programs that we have seen, including systemic fraud, internationally organized criminal fraud rings, and other threats to our systems, programs and the federal budget,” said Ranking Member Crapo.

“The fraud associated with pandemic unemployment programs reached staggering levels,” Ranking Member Portman said.  “Billions of hard-working Americans’ taxpayer dollars that were meant to help out-of-work Americans instead went to criminals and cheats.  This legislation will give the states the incentives and tools necessary to recover this stolen money.”

Background:

• The White House estimated that 19 percent of total COVID unemployment insurance payments were lost to fraud--offering a low estimate of roughly $80 billion.  By contrast, the Department of Labor’s estimate puts that number much higher. 

• In May 2022, the Washington Post reported that an estimated $163 billion were siphoned away by fraudsters, and that if the government’s best estimate is accurate, only 2.4 percent of wrongful payments have been recovered. 

For bill text, click here.