Beth Van Duyne: “I thank the chairman for his support of this legislation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Small Business…”

“I thank the chairman for his support of this legislation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Small Business Administration oversaw what has been described as ``the biggest fraud in a generation,'' doling out more than $200 billion to scammers, foreign crime rings, and others who took advantage of a pandemic to enrich themselves. According to the Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, the SBA invited this fraud by failing to implement basic safeguards to ensure taxpayer funds were going to the right people. Some of the pandemic aid even went to people involved in transnational crime organizations. When government mandates forced small businesses to close their doors, some resulting in permanent closures, fraudsters were out taking expensive vacations, buying Lamborghinis, mansions, private jets, horses, luxury jewelry, and more, all on the taxpayers' dime. While we work to recover the stolen funds, those criminals must be identified and prosecuted. The Small Business Administration not only failed to implement safeguards to prevent fraud of this scope, but they also failed to comply with the law originally authorizing the aid, which required the agency to include an easily accessible link for the public to report suspected fraud. Instead, the SBA has ignored legal requirements and made it incredibly difficult to report fraud.…”