Taxpayer dollars earmarked for COVID relief went to services for illegal migrants in Dem-run city: Report



Madison, Wisconsin, used taxpayer dollars earmarked for the city's emergency COVID-19 relief response to fund services for illegal migrants, according to a recent probe conducted by the Institute for Reforming Government's Center for Investigative Oversight.

The IRG's report, released Thursday, revealed that the city approved "a $700,000 budget for 'Services to Residents who are Undocumented,'" read a letter from state Sen. Duey Stroebel (R) to the city.

The funds were a part of the city's State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, which received funds from the federal government's American Rescue Plan Act to aid with the public health emergency. The taxpayer money was "intended to help residents recover from the pandemic," the IRG noted. Instead, 10% of the SLFRF funds went to organizations providing services to illegal migrants, the investigation revealed.

The city reportedly approved the funds in the fourth quarter of 2023.

"This earmark for illegal immigrants is alarming since you point out these individuals would normally be 'ineligible' for 'direct assistance' in many cases," Stroebel's letter to the city continued.

The state senator requested additional information regarding the redirected COVID relief funds, including a list of grant applications received by the city, a list of grant applications that were denied, and "a breakdown of what the $700,000 of grants were used for (i.e. direct cash assistance, gas cards, utility assistance, legal representation, etc.)."

Stroebel requested a time estimate regarding his open-records request.

In a Thursday post on X, Stroebel noted that according to Madison's fourth-quarter report, the "pandemic funding could be used to pay for utility bills, gas cards, and more."

"It's insane that, at a time when Wisconsinites are struggling to keep up with inflation, that taxpayer dollars are being used to help illegal immigrants pay their bills," he added.

Per Madison\u2019s Q4 report, pandemic funding could be used to pay for utility bills, gas cards, and more. \n\nIt\u2019s insane that, at a time when Wisconsinites are struggling to keep up with inflation, that taxpayer dollars are being used to help illegal immigrants pay their bills.
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"Hardworking Wisconsin taxpayers deserve to know how their money is being spent," the IRG stated. "They especially deserve to know how sending tax dollars to provide services to illegal immigrants in 2024 was 'necessary' in response to and recovery from the 'COVID-19 public health emergency' of 2020. It is unclear how grants to local nonprofits for 'Services to Residents who are Undocumented' nearly five years following the pandemic meets the intent of the program."

United States Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.) called the investigation's discovery "another example of the Biden admin and Democrats WASTING and ABUSING your tax dollars."

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Miami real estate agent sentenced to prison for using COVID PPP funds to get Bentley, luxury apartment, and cosmetic procedures: 'Everybody was doing it'



A Miami real estate agent was sentenced to prison for using COVID-19 relief funds from the government to get a Bentley, a luxury apartment, and cosmetic procedures.

Daniela Rendon obtained $381,000 through the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans under her company names Rendon PA and Rendon Holdings, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida. To qualify for PPP loans, she is accused of falsifying her revenue, number of employees, and payroll at her real estate business, then submitting fraudulent IRS tax forms.

USA Today reported, "She then enrolled her friends, family members, and herself as employees of Rendon PA to disperse the checks, according to the indictment."

She purportedly wrote a 30-page thesis explaining the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and suggested a plan to launch non-profit organizations to support those affected by the pandemic.

Rendon – a self-described "Ultra Luxury" real estate agent on LinkedIn – submitted the fabricated reports to lenders in New Jersey and Idaho, according to the Miami Herald. Rendon reportedly used the payroll processor in New Jersey to facilitate the COVID relief loans through her corporate bank account. She then allegedly issued the checks to family and friends.

The Florida real estate agent used that fraudulently obtained funds from the Small Business Administration to lease a 2021 Bentley Bentayga, rent a luxury Biscayne Bay apartment, pay for cosmetic procedures, and refinish her designer shoes. Rendon reportedly operated the scam between April 2020 to April 2022.

The 31-year-old mother of three was charged with seven counts of wire fraud, two counts of money laundering, and one count of aggravated identity theft. She faced a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

On Thursday, Rendon pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in April 2023 after the prosecutors dropped all of the other charges. She was sentenced to three and a half years in prison – the shortest prison sentence recommended by sentencing guidelines. Rendon will be under supervised release and owes nearly $200,000 in restitution.

Rendon said her fraudulent actions were "motivated by insatiable greed."

She said in a statement to the court, "Looking back, it becomes all too tempting to utter the words 'everybody was doing it' as a feeble attempt to rationalize my actions. I regretfully confess that I once foolishly believed that the victims of my crimes were merely the faceless entities of the U.S. Government."

In June, the Office of Inspector General of the Small Business Administration released a report that found that the federal government lost more than $200 billion in COVID-19 pandemic relief funds to potential fraud, waste, and abuse.

The report estimated that at least 17% of the total COVID relief funds valued at $1.2 trillion were stolen through fraud schemes.

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State lawmakers spent COVID pandemic money on new hotels, baseball stadiums, and ski slopes



Instead of spending money for projects related to the coronavirus pandemic, several state lawmakers used federal coronavirus pandemic relief funds on things not remotely tied to COVID-19, according to a new report from the Associated Press. The report claims that states spent the COVID-19 relief funds on hotels, baseball stadiums, and ski slopes.

A high-end 29-story hotel with 800 rooms in Florida that will have views of the Atlantic Ocean and an 11,000 square-foot spa was provided with $140 million by officials in Broward County.`

The Hudson Valley Renegades – the High-A minor league baseball team affiliated with the New York Yankees – received $12 million in local government funds for renovations on their stadium in Dutchess County, New York.

In Massachusetts, lawmakers supplied $5 million to pay off the debts of the struggling Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate in Boston – a nonprofit civic engagement and educational institution honoring the late senator. The Edward Kennedy Institute operated at a $27 million loss between 2015 and 2019, according to tax filings.

New Jersey used $15 million for upgrades to bolster the state's bid to host the 2026 World Cup.

Officials in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, signed off on spending $53,000 to remodel the town's city hall.

Alabama reportedly used $400 million to build new prisons.

Puerto Rico spent $70 million on tourism marketing campaigns.

Colorado Springs allegedly used $6.6 million in pandemic relief funds to replace irrigation systems at two golf courses.

There was $2 million allotted to hiring new parking enforcement officers in Washington, D.C.

Officials in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, used COVID relief funds to purchase a privately owned ski area.

The AP reported that $1 million was spent to pay off overdue child support in St. Louis.

"A city memo states that owing child support stops some people from looking for work because the overdue payments are garnished from paychecks; the program would 'empower individuals' by paying down a portion," the outlet stated.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) reacted to the report by saying, "They need to give us an accounting. Show us how you’ve already spent the money Congress gave you. It's hard to imagine how a four-star hotel is helping to solve the pain of COVID."

Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) told the AP, "Our hospitals were overwhelmed because of the pandemic and somebody now has a hotel somewhere?"

The Associated Press noted, "But with permissive Treasury Department rules governing how the pandemic money can be spent, state and local governments face few limitations."

Liz Bourgeois – a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department – said the program was a success in enabling state and local governments to "recover from financial distress."

“Ultimately local governments are accountable to their communities on their decisions on how best to use their funds,” Bourgeois said in a statement.

Mark Ritacco – director of government affairs for the National Association of Counties – argued, "Counties should be able to determine what’s best for them. Their residents will decide whether that was appropriate or not at the ballot box."

The American Rescue Plan provided money to state and local governments to save jobs, open schools, and increase COVID-19 vaccinations during the pandemic.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) warned in March 2021 that the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan is an "orgy of pork," chock-full of spending that is unrelated to COVID-19 pandemic relief. The coronavirus relief bill presented previously failing union pension plans a whopping $86 billion bailout.