WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Judiciary Committee and author of legislation that strengthened the False Claims Act (FCA), is urging the Supreme Court to uphold Congress’s original intent of the law – which is designed to root out fraud and abuse in federal government programs. Recently, several circuit court decisions have weakened the law and made it more difficult to hold those who have committed fraud accountable, including those who knowingly defrauded the American public.

“If the False Claims Act is weakened, taxpayers are ultimately the ones who pay the price. That’s why I’m strongly advocating for the Supreme Court to uphold the government’s most useful and effective fraud-fighting tool – a tool that has helped save taxpayers $70 billion since I pushed to strengthen it. I’ll continue working to root out fraud, waste and abuse by protecting and strengthening the False Claims Act,” Grassley said.

Grassley’s amicus brief specifically discusses the United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. decision, which he argues badly distorted the original intent of the FCA by ignoring statute and the Supreme Court’s precedents. Grassley urges the Supreme Court to reverse this decision as it incorrectly restricts the FCA.

"SuperValu’s radical departure from the statute continues a lamentable tradition of some courts interpreting the FCA in an unduly restrictive fashion, which Congress and this Court repeatedly have stepped in to correct. The...

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