Residents of Woodbury may want to follow a Minnesota legislative proposal concerning fraudsters likely stole $200 billion from pandemic funding meant for small businesses.
Most of the lost taxpayer money, which was “intended to help eligible small business owners and entrepreneurs adversely affected by the crisis,” will likely not be recovered.
The SBA Office of Inspector General released a report on COVID-19 Pandemic EIDL and PPP Loan Fraud, which found that 17% of the $1.2 trillion allocated by Congress was “disbursed to potentially fraudulent actors.” “OIG’s oversight and investigative work has resulted in 1,011 indictments, 803 arrests, and 529 convictions related to COVID-19 EIDL and PPP fraud as of May 2023,” the report said.
Despite these arrests, only $30 billion of the lost funds has been recovered.
The IG has pledged to continue working to get the funds back, saying it has thousands of open investigations.
Most of the lost taxpayer money, which was “intended to help eligible small business owners and entrepreneurs adversely affected by the crisis,” will likely not be recovered.
Lawmakers responded to the report with concern.
Chair of the House Committee on Small Business Roger Williams, R-Texas, said the latest IG report shows far more criminal fraud taking advantage of SBA than has been reported so far.
As the measure advances, residents of Woodbury can follow amendments and contact Amanda H. Hemmingsen-Jaeger regarding the final language.
Article Source: Alpha News: “Fraudsters likely stole $200 billion from pandemic funding meant for small businesses”
