Without Congressional action, the authority of the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) will sunset on March 27, 2025. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was enacted in March 2020 to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans suffering the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The government disbursed an estimated $800 billion through pandemic relief programs since then. SIGPR was created by the CARES Act to oversee the spending of government funds disbursed through the CARES Act.
According to its most recent report, SIGPR has recovered more than $187 million stemming from its investigations into fraud, waste, abuse, or misconduct involving CARES Act funds.[1] SIGPR claims that its outstanding investigations could lead to an additional $577 million in recoveries. If SIGPR sunsets, one tool for recovering government funds fraudulently obtained under the guise of pandemic relief will cease to exist.
The SIGPR is a fairly recent addition to the government’s arsenal of fraud-fighting weapons. The more traditional tools, those employed by the Department of Justice (DOJ), with the support of private whistleblowers, will continue to be employed to root out fraud related to pandemic relief programs. During the time that SIPGR recovered $187 million, the DOJ recovered over $300 million through the False Claim Act (FCA)-based investigations into pandemic-related fraud.[2] In 2024 alone, the DOJ reported that...
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