Lankford Introduces Anti-Fraud Bills to Kickstart Cutting Waste

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK), founding member of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus, introduced two bills today to tackle fraud and waste.

"Making the government more efficient isn't a partisan issue-it's an American issue. Loopholes in the law let fraudsters get away with billions in COVID recovery and Unemployment Insurance payouts while forcing taxpayers to foot the bill. The decades of government waste must come to an end," said Lankford.

Lankford's Fraudulent Covid Funds Recovery Act would extend the statute of limitations for all pandemic-era programs. Currently, all of the pandemic-era programs meant to combat fraud will end in 2025, so extending the statute of limitations from 5 years to 10 years would allow law enforcement to combat fraud at all levels. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) is cosponsoring this legislation.

The second bill, Eliminate Fraudulent Unemployment Insurance Benefits Act, would require states to withhold payments from any claimant it deems ineligible and fraudulent. It also creates new definitions to help states appropriately classify fraudulent activity.

Last year, Lankford released the latest edition of his government waste book: Federal Fumbles: Ways the Federal Government Dropped the Ball, which highlights almost half-a-trillion dollars in government waste. Lankford also championed the Taxpayers Right-to-Know Act which resulted in the launch of the Federal Program Inventory (FPI) earlier this year so the American people can see how their tax dollars are being spent.

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