RECOVERY OF STOLEN CHECKS ACT

On 2025-03-31, Representative Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11) delivered a floor speech titled "RECOVERY OF STOLEN CHECKS ACT" in the House. The speech addressed taxes and also covered the environment, trade policy. It referenced legislation: HR1155.

RECOVERY OF STOLEN CHECKS ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 57 (Monday, March 31, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 57 (Monday, March 31, 2025)] [House] [Pages H1351-H1353] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] RECOVERY OF STOLEN CHECKS ACT Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1155) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow taxpayers to elect to receive certain replacement refunds electronically, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 1155 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Recovery of Stolen Checks Act''. SEC. 2. ELECTION TO RECEIVE CERTAIN REPLACEMENT REFUNDS ELECTRONICALLY. (a) In General.--Section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(o) Election to Receive Certain Replacement Refunds by Direct Deposit.--Not later than the date which is 6 months after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall prescribe regulations to establish procedures to allow for taxpayers, which are otherwise eligible to receive an amount by paper check in replacement of a lost or stolen paper check which was previously sent by the Secretary as a refund of an overpayment of tax, to elect to receive such amount by direct deposit in lieu of receiving such replacement paper check.''. (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) and the gentlewoman from Alabama (Ms. Sewell) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri. General Leave Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and submit extraneous material on the bill under consideration. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Missouri? There was no objection. Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1155, the Recovery of Stolen Checks Act. With the April 15 tax filing deadline right around the corner, we are reminded of the need to make the IRS more responsive to the American people. Unfortunately, the manner in which the IRS currently responds to stolen tax refund checks is truly insane. Right now, if someone has their refund check stolen out of the mail, the IRS will replace that stolen check by sending another one through the mail. It should surprise no one to learn that quite often that replacement check is also stolen out of the mail. There is no law keeping the IRS from sending a replacement check through a direct deposit to a bank. However, the IRS currently does not have procedures in place for a taxpayer to make such a request. This bill fixes that flaw. I wish to commend my Ways and Means Committee colleagues, Representatives Malliotakis, Kustoff, and Sewell, for their bipartisan leadership on this issue. In Representative Malliotakis' district alone, they have seen $3.8 million in IRS tax refund checks stolen. Taxpayers that are victims of this crime need to be made whole. They do not need to jump through more hoops or deal with the hassle of seeing their replacement refund checks stolen as well. This legislation received unanimous approval in the Ways and Means Committee, and I encourage my colleagues to give it an equally strong bipartisan vote here in the House. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Ms. SEWELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am very proud today to join my colleague, Representative Malliotakis, in cosponsoring and speaking in favor of the Recovery of Stolen Checks Act. This bill requires the Treasury to make procedures that allow taxpayers to opt in to receiving a replacement refund by direct deposit after their paper checks have been lost or stolen in the mail. Right now, the Treasury Department is only allowed to continue sending a paper check to the same address, even though the check was stolen or lost at that very address. It is Congress' responsibility to give Treasury the ability to modernize, become more efficient, and most importantly, deliver much-needed payments to people that are relying on them as quickly as possible. This is a commonsense, straightforward, and urgent reform. Every year, millions of Americans eagerly await their tax refund, money that they have rightfully earned. Unfortunately, criminals have exploited weaknesses in our system, stealing and cashing checks that do not belong to them. This fraud not only robs individuals of their refunds but also costs taxpayers millions of dollars annually. The Recovery of Stolen Checks Act strengthens the government's ability to track and recover stolen refund checks. It empowers the U.S. Treasury and financial industries and institutions to act swiftly when fraud is detected, enabling that victim to get their payment much faster and that criminal to be held accountable. With this bill, stolen checks can be flagged and traced more efficiently, victims will experience a quicker resolution and recovery process, banks and financial institutions will have clearer guidelines to prevent fraudulent transactions, and taxpayer dollars will be better protected, reducing the losses due to fraud. Every dollar, Mr. Speaker, lost to fraud is a dollar taken from taxpayers. H.R. 1155 ensures that their hard-earned money is safeguarded and that criminals cannot exploit the system without consequences. By closing loopholes and enhancing the recovery efforts, this legislation protects the integrity of our tax system and restores trust in financial security. Mr. Speaker, I have had dozens of conversations with constituents who have spent months trying to receive a check from Treasury. In one instance, a constituent was sent two checks by the Treasury Department, neither delivered to her nor cashed by her before reaching out to my office for assistance. She just wanted the payment that she was owed. Instead, the Treasury Department told her that they would only continue mailing a paper check to the same address where it had failed to get to her multiple times. This policy is burdensome and it simply does not work. The caseworker on my staff continued to encounter cases just like this one, some taking over a year to resolve. This is way too long for the American public, and we need to do something about it. That is why this particular bill's resolution is common sense. I ask my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Malliotakis), the sponsor of this legislation. Ms. MALLIOTAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman and the Ways and Means Committee staff for working with me on this legislation to combat mail theft and fraud. A few months ago, I raised the issue of stolen checks to the Ways and Means Committee after my office had been slammed with constituent cases from taxpayers who have seen their hard-earned money stolen from them via check fraud. I, alongside my colleagues, Congresswoman Terri Sewell and Congressman David Kustoff, introduced H.R. 1155, the Recovery of Stolen Checks Act, a bipartisan bill that would allow taxpayers whose tax refunds were stolen in the mail to receive a replacement payment via direct deposit. This legislation passed out of the Ways and Means Committee last month on a bipartisan basis, and it was unanimous. [[Page H1352]] In my district alone, we have seen 376 constituents who have had stolen IRS checks. The amount is staggering: $5.4 million, and that is in my district alone. Out of these 376 cases, 50 times checks were stolen twice, 7 times they were stolen 3 times, and in some cases, checks were even stolen 4 times in a row from the same constituent. It has been reported that for IRS checks alone, approximately 40,000 were stolen nationally in 2024 and that is up from 100 checks in 2022. The value stolen has been approximately $1 billion, and this has become a real business for criminal organizations and enterprises and the fraudsters who are preying upon American citizens. It is very unfortunate that we are seeing this hardship and stress placed on the intended recipients who have had to endure seeing their checks being stolen and then they have to wait months to sometimes see their replacement check also stolen. This is not just happening with IRS tax refunds. It is also happening with Social Security and other benefits that our constituents rely on. Approximately 10 percent of American taxpayers receive their tax refunds via paper checks, equating to about 10 million paper checks issued annually. While the majority of taxpayers opt for direct deposit, a significant number still receive refunds through traditional mail. The IRS plays a critical role in ensuring taxpayers receive their hard-earned refund securely and efficiently. However, outdated IT infrastructure and delivery systems have left many vulnerable to fraud and stolen tax reimbursement checks. Modernizing these systems is no longer optional. It is necessary to protect taxpayers, to enhance efficiency, and to reduce fraud. Obviously, there is still more work to be done. We still need the DOJ and our law enforcement partners to continue their investigations to find and prosecute these fraudsters. We are hearing of arrests and prosecutions on a regular basis, but we urge them to continue their good work. This is an essential first step in addressing the increasing frequency of mail theft. I am encouraged by President Trump's executive order

Referenced legislation: HR1155, HR1155