U.S. Senators Katie Britt, Joni Ernst, Colleagues Crack Down on Fraudsters, Wasteful Spending

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) joined Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and 13 of their Senate colleagues in introducing the Protecting American Taxpayers Act to recover wasteful funds, protect taxpayer dollars, and hold fraudsters accountable. The bill includes 16 initiatives supported by both Democratic and Republican senators. “Thanks to the Trump Administration, we’ve learned more about just how rampant fraud is across our federal government,” said Senator Britt. “This legislation takes important steps not only to crack down on this fraud once and for all and hold fraudsters accountable, but also to protect hard-earned taxpayer dollars. I’m thankful to Senator Ernst for her tireless leadership, and I’m proud to join her and many of my colleagues in our continued efforts to crack down on waste, fraud, and abuse.” The Protecting American Taxpayers Act comprises of 16 initiatives with broad Republican and Democrat backing. To recover wasteful funds, the bill will work to claw back $65 billion worth of unused COVID funds, prevent criminals convicted of defrauding the Small Business Administration from receiving future assistance, require the President’s annual budget request to include data on improper payments, among other initiatives. “The American taxpayer is not a piggy bank for fraudsters, and it’s time Washington started acting like it,” said Senator Ernst . “Criminals steal more than $1 billion from taxpayers every single day. My Protecting American Taxpayers Act cracks down on these schemes, stops fraud before it starts, and recovers stolen dollars. By putting this bill up for a vote, every senator will have the chance to prove whether they stand with taxpayers or criminals.” To protect taxpayer dollars, the bill will prohibit funds from going to countries under travel bans or arms embargoes, disclose cash assistance in Afghanistan to prevent Taliban access, and increase accountability for employment outcomes through updates to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. To stop fraudsters and hold them accountable, the bill establishes a task force to combat deepfake scams, closes loopholes in whistleblower protection laws, extends the statutes of limitations to ensure criminals are caught and held accountable, among other measures. Senator Britt is a member of the new Senate Anti-Fraud Task Force , intended to examine and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse. The Task Force recently sent a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald requesting information to help Congress support and strengthen their mission moving forward. Senator Britt is a champion of bipartisan efforts such as the Enhanced Cybersecurity for SNAP Act and continues to work with the Trump Administration to hold criminals accountable for targeting various taxpayer-funded programs . You can read the full text of the bill here . ###