At the beginning of this column, I said the Senate has yet to pass any major fraud bills. That is true, and Democrats have mostly rejected our attempts to address fraud.
But there is a sliver of good news to report: The Senate Taxes Committee recently passed a bill called the Take It Back Act that will help recover your stolen fraud dollars.
This bill creates a 100% tax on money obtained through fraud, on top of any criminal penalties already handed down. Every dollar collected goes into a dedicated account that must be used for income tax relief for Minnesota taxpayers. So the people who got ripped off will actually see something come back to them.
The Department of Revenue handles enforcement rather than the courts, so tax collectors and auditors can go after money hidden in shell companies or moved overseas.
This bill does have bipartisan support in both chambers, so while it still has a long way to go, there is reason to be optimistic.
As always, if you have any questions about any issues the Senate is working on, please do not hesitate to contact me. It is an honor to serve you.