A California Democrat has introduced a new bill which would decriminalize certain welfare fraud under $25,000.
Los Angeles Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas proposed new legislation which would raise the threshold for prosecution of welfare fraud enacted due to administrative errors.
Senate Bill 560 also seeks to axe prosecutions for attempted welfare fraud amounting to less than $950.
‘The bill would require a county human services agency to determine whether benefits were authorized as a result of an error in the Statewide Automated Welfare System (CalSAWS) and prohibit the agency from referring a case for criminal action if benefits were authorized in error,’ the proposal reads.
‘This bill is about keeping families out of the criminal justice system from making administrative errors on raising the threshold for welfare fraud prosecutions,’ Smallwood-Cuevas said.
Currently, welfare fraud is criminalized at any amount, but below $950 is considered a misdemeanor while any amount above is a felony.
‘California’s safety net should lift families up, not trap them in poverty,’ the lawmaker added in a statement to Fox News Digital.
‘Right now, a missed deadline or paperwork mistake can lead to felony charges that tear families apart — even when there’s no intent to deceive.’
California Democrat Lola Smallwood-Cuevas has introduced a new bill which would decriminalize certain welfare fraud under $25,000
mallwood-Cuevas proposed new legislation which would raise the threshold for prosecution of welfare fraud enacted due to administrative errors
However, around 8,000 welfare fraud cases are identified in Los Angeles County alone each year, according to the county’s Department of Public Services.
Of these around 200 are referred for prosecution, with a 95 percent conviction rate.
Most of the convicted cases will have a court-order to pay the county back.
Smallwood-Cuevas’ critics believe softening the laws on prosecution could lead to increased fraud.
The most common forms of welfare fraud uncovered by LA DPS’ investigations are, an absent parent in the home, unreported income, lying about the number of children in the home and claims which originate from outside the county, according to the agency.
SB560 passed the Senate Human Services Committee earlier this month and is scheduled for a hearing on May 5.
DailyMail.com has contacted Smallwood-Cuevas for comment.
Welfare fraud is among the areas being tackled by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Senate Bill 560 also seeks to axe prosecutions for attempted welfare fraud amounting to less than $950
The Tesla boss previously revealed staggering data showing there are millions of dead Americans still eligible for social security payments.
Musk posted a chart on X showing that there are more than 20 million Americans listed over the age of 100, including 3.9 million in the 130-139 range, more than 3.5 million aged 140-149 and more than 1.3 million in the range 150-159.
There was even an ‘alive’ citizen aged over 360, according to the records.
In one shocking case, DOGE said they found someone with a birthday in 2154 who claimed $41,000 in benefits.
Musk shared the findings on his X account, claiming he was so stunned by the numbers it took him multiple times to grasp the information.
‘Your tax dollars were going to pay fraudulent unemployment claims for fake people born in the future,’ Musk said. ‘This is so crazy that I had to read it several times before it sank in.’
