By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — State Senator Dr. Mark Steffen noted Wednesday that there are systemic issues within the Kansas Department of Labor that are causing struggles for many Kansans. He heard about that this week in the Senate Commerce committee.
"What we heard, just one after the other, was the degree of fraud going on within the Department of Labor," Steffen said. "It's literally bringing that department down. It's literally, clearly, it's ground it to a complete stop. That was the overwhelmingly incredible news of the day. This fraud is literally draining a $300 million unemployment insurance pool to nothing."
Everybody likely knows somebody who has been a victim of this fraud.
"We were told yesterday that they are getting like 2,300 fradulent claims a day," Steffen said. "This is originating overseas. A lot of these claims get labeled as fraudulent, but end up getting paid."
Since the funds are from taxes on employers in the state, every employer has a vested interest in seeing that this stops.
"Employers pay this in," Steffen said. "We were told very clear that they are going to want that money back. That's an issue in and of itself."
Steffen would like to hear more from the executive branch on how they plan to address the fraud as the session goes forward.
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