Press Releases
Six Individuals Charged with Fraudulently Obtaining $1 Million from the Paycheck Protection Program in Scheme Investigated by PRAC’s Fraud Task Force
This case was also supported by the PRAC’s Pandemic Analytics Center of Excellence, which applies the latest advances in analytic and forensic technologies to help OIGs and law enforcement pursue data-driven pandemic relief fraud investigations. The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to submit false and fraudulent loan applications through the PPP loan program. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided more than $2 trillion in relief for individuals and businesses adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act also authorized the Small...
09/01/2023
Statement from PRAC Chair Michael Horowitz Following COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Action
Michael E. Horowitz, Chair of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), issued a statement following the U.S. Department of Justice’s COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force Roundtable Meeting, where officials announced the results of a nationwide effort that included 718 enforcement actions for offenses related to over $836 million in alleged COVID-19 fraud: “Agency decisions in the early months of the pandemic that prioritized speed over accuracy in delivery of relief funds led to brazen fraud and outright theft of millions of dollars. To protect taxpayer funds, the PRAC created a...
08/23/2023
Statement from PRAC Chair Michael Horowitz Following Federal Charges in $53 Million Pandemic Fraud Scheme Investigated by PRAC’s Fraud Task Force
Michael E. Horowitz, Chair of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), issued the following statement after 14 people were charged with allegedly defrauding the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program and financial institutions of more than $53 million.
06/28/2023
PRAC Releases Semiannual Report to Congress for October 1, 2022, through March 31, 2023
Michael E. Horowitz, Chair of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), announced the release of the PRAC’s Semiannual Report to Congress. The report covers the period from October 1, 2022, through March 31, 2023, and is the sixth Semiannual Report to Congress since the PRAC was created in March 2020.
06/05/2023
PRAC Issues Fraud Alert Follow-Up: Improved Data Sharing and Agencies’ Use of the Do Not Pay System Would Strengthen Program Integrity
The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) issued a Fraud Alert follow-up that shows the potential benefits of agencies using the Department of Treasury’s (Treasury) Do Not Pay (DNP) system to prevent and detect fraud.
05/11/2023
Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Names Executive Director
Mark Lee Greenblatt, Chair of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE), has appointed Virginia “Jenny” Rone to serve as the Executive Director of the PRAC.
03/08/2023