York County News

Senators Lindsey M. Williams and Kristin Phillips-Hill have announced their intention to reintroduce the Commonwealth Fraud Prevention Act for Taxpayer Accountability. This proposed legislation aims to act as a Pennsylvania False Claims Act, focusing on protecting whistleblowers and encouraging the reporting of fraud, waste, and abuse involving government funds.

The act is designed to motivate private citizens to report false or fraudulent claims against the Pennsylvania government. By aligning with the Federal False Claims Act's requirements, Pennsylvania could recover an additional 10% of any recovered monies under this law.

"Budget Hearings are starting this week in both the House and Senate for the 2025-26 budget. But once again, the General Assembly is negotiating how to spend billions of taxpayer dollars without the Commonwealth Fraud Prevention Act, which will protect those dollars from waste, fraud, and abuse," said Senator Williams. "As a whistleblower and as an attorney who worked with whistleblowers for years, I can tell you that people want to do the right thing and report fraud when they see it. But there are a lot of risks in doing so. Protecting and encouraging whistleblowers to come forward is the best and most effective way to prevent fraud and protect our tax dollars."

Senator Phillips-Hill emphasized accountability: "Pennsylvania taxpayers deserve accountability, and the failure to adopt a civil fraud statute has cost the Commonwealth," she stated. "It’s time to change that. This bipartisan proposal will finally provide the protections needed to ensure whistleblowers, those on the front lines who can expose fraud, stop scams, and protect hard-earned taxpayer dollars. Other states have proven the success of these measures, recovering substantial funds that would have otherwise been lost. Pennsylvania must step up and ensure that fraudsters are held accountable at every level of state government."