Recover COVID Unemployment Fraud in Banks Act
Key claim: The Recover COVID Unemployment Fraud in Banks Act extends the statute of limitations to 10 years for criminal and civil enforcement of fraud in COVID-19 pandemic unemployment programs and establishes a task force to locate and recover fraudulent payments held by financial institutions and state unclaimed-property agencies.
Abstract
(HR8873 · 119th Congress)
Recover COVID Unemployment Fraud in Banks Act This bill extends to 10 years the statute of limitations for federal criminal charges or civil enforcement actions for fraud related to several unemployment insurance programs that were established during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill also establishes a task force to locate fraudulent payments and develop strategies to recover such payments. The extension applies to Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation, and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation. The bill extends the statute of limitations for (1) criminal charges related to fraud, including aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit fraud (currently subject to a 5-year statute of limitations); and (2) civil actions involving false claims (currently subject to a 6-year statute of limitations). However, the bill does not apply to a criminal prosecution or civil enforcement action if the applicable statute of limitations expired before the date of the bill’s enactment. The task force established by this bill must coordinate with state agencies to identify federal pandemic unemployment compensation payments held by financial institutions and other entities or held by state agencies responsible for unclaimed property, coordinate with federal agencies to develop model processes that result in the cost-effective recovery of such payments, issue guidance to financial institutions on legal pathways for returning such payments, and issue guidance to state unclaimed property agencies on their obligation to review and return such payments.
Latest action (2026-06-29): Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Why this matters
For workers, a longer enforcement window means COVID-era unemployment claimants could face criminal or civil recovery actions years later than under standard 5-year fraud limitations, raising due-process and recordkeeping stakes for legitimate recipients as well as fraudsters. For employers, state workforce agencies, and financial institutions, the bill signals new compliance obligations around locating, freezing, and returning suspected fraudulent unemployment funds—potentially including balances sitting in dormant accounts or state unclaimed-property pools.