AMERICANALMANAC (Sadie Smith) - Sen. Joni Ernst targets 'fraudster families' with bill to cut off relatives of convicted scammers from federal aid
A California family's $18 million COVID-relief fraud scheme, complete with ankle-bracelet escapes and a fugitive chase to Montenegro, has inspired new Senate legislation aimed at blocking convicted fraudsters' household members from federal money. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) introduced the No Cash for Cohabitating Kins of Crooks Act, a bill that would bar anyone living with […] The post Sen. Joni Ernst targets 'fraudster families' with bill to cut off relatives of convicted scammers from federal aid appeared first on American Almanac .
A California family's $18 million COVID-relief fraud scheme, complete with ankle-bracelet escapes and a fugitive chase to Montenegro, has inspired new Senate legislation aimed at blocking convicted fraudsters' household members from federal money. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) introduced the No Cash for Cohabitating Kins of Crooks Act, a bill that would bar anyone living with a convicted criminal or fraudster from receiving federal grants, loans, subawards, or reimbursements. Ernst rolled out the legislation alongside her August Squeal Award, a monthly spotlight on government waste that this time named 15 families she says collectively swindled taxpayers out of roughly $50 million. The bill and the award share a common thread: fraud that runs…Open