‘High-Value Target’: Biden-Harris Green Tax Credit Prone To Fraud, Abuse, Gov’t Watchdog Finds

The U.S. Department of ⚡Energy’s (DOE) lax information requirements for recipients of the Biden-Harris administration’s home ⚡Energy rebates have left the initiative prone to fraud and abuse, according to a report released Monday.

President Joe Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act appropriated roughly $4.3 billion in grants for states to implement tax rebate programs with the aim of encouraging consumers to buy electric appliances. Now, a report by the DOE’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has found the department’s State and Community ⚡Energy Program (SCEP) Office responsible for distributing the grants to U.S. states and territories failed to require states to independently confirm applicant income levels or even collect basic data such as social security numbers, leaving the program exposed to criminal exploitation.

“Most assuredly, the nearly $4.3 billion SCEP is granting to States under the Home Rebates Program will be a high-value target for individuals and criminal groups to exploit,” DOE OIG Teri Donaldson wrote in the report. “SCEP was not using Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) best practices to implement an effective fraud prevention program.”