Mercury News-
Potentially more than one-fourth of the unemployment payments made in California might have been fraudulent, state officials revealed Monday in a disturbing new revelation regarding the state’s reeling jobless benefits system.
Of the $114 billion that California officials have paid out for unemployment claims since government-ordered business shutdowns began in March 2020, an estimated 10% are known to be fraudulent claims.
But the actual number could be significantly higher, possibly reaching 27%.
“Roughly 10% of the $114 billion in claims are confirmed fraudulent, another 17% are potentially fraudulent,” California Labor Secretary Julie Su said during a question-and-answer session regarding the EDD’s efforts to combat unemployment insurance fraud.
The California Right 