Qui Tam

"Defund the Crooks Act" passed by Congress

By LaBovick Law

Upon returning from holiday recess, the 111^th Congress of the United States enacted bill H.R. 4444, better known as the Defund the Crooks Act, in early January 2010. First introduced by Congressman Alan Grayson (D-FL), the Defund the Crooks Act prohibits the Federal Government from awarding Federal funds, contracts, or grants to covered organizations. The Act also prohibits the Federal Government from promoting certain organizations or from entering into other agreements with these organizations.

Based in part on the Defund ACORN Act of 2009, Congressman Grayson's bill effectively broadens the scope of regulation while not basing the regulation on the acts of one organization. The purpose of the bill is essentially to ensure that Federal funds – taxpayer dollars – do not end up in the hands of organizations that fail to meet certain requirements.

According to the bill, 'covered organizations' refers to several of the following examples:

• Any organization previously convicted of a Federal or State law violation
• Any organization that failed to comply with Federal or State laws leading to its corporate charter being revoked
• Any organization that has filed, transmitted, or submitted a fraudulent claim to any Federal or State agency
• Any organization that knowingly employs, contracts, or relegates authority to any individual who has been convicted of a Federal or State law violation

The Defund the Crooks Act states that no Federal funds, regardless of form, may be provided to organizations that do not meet the aforementioned requirements set out in the bill. It is important to note that the Act does not apply to organizations that received Federal funds prior to the enactment of the bill. However, if organizations that are now deemed unfit to receive Federal funds, grants, endorsements, etc. have a contract extending past the date of the bill's enactment, they will be terminated.

Click on the following link to view the official H.R. 4444 bill released by Congress.

Click on the following to learn more on Congressman Grayson and the Defund the Crooks Act (H.R. 4444).

Full post as published by Whistleblower Law Blog on January 28, 2010 (boomark / email).