Put America on Commission Act of 2026

H.R. 7412, the Put America on Commission Act of 2026, would establish an Office of Whistleblower Awards (OWA) within the Small Business Administration. If enacted, the office would pay financial rewards to individuals who provide original information leading to convictions, plea agreements, or settlements involving fraud or financial misconduct related to COVID-19 pandemic relief programs, including Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).

The bill would create a Whistleblower Award Fund to pay these rewards and cover the office's operating costs. Only the whistleblower who made the most substantial contribution to a case would receive an award if multiple people reported the same fraud. Whistleblowers would be ineligible for awards if they were convicted of planning or initiating the fraudulent conduct they reported. The bill has passed committee review and is eligible for a floor vote, though passage is not guaranteed.

This legislation responds to significant fraud in pandemic relief programs. Reports indicate the SBA distributed over $200 billion in potentially fraudulent COVID relief loans, with estimates suggesting $36 billion in pandemic funds were issued based on fraudulent applications. The bill aims to incentivize reporting of this fraud by offering financial rewards similar to existing whistleblower programs at other federal agencies.