Guthrie, House Republicans Take Action to Prevent Fraud and Hold Bad Actors Accountable
WASHINGTON, D.C.,
June 17, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. – This month, Congressman Guthrie (KY-02) voted in favor of a series of bills to combat fraud, increase program integrity, and ensure that benefits are available for those who need them most.
“Over the past months, Americans have been outraged by the alarming fraud schemes that have come to light. From California to Minnesota to New York, the schemes that have been uncovered have victimized the very individuals these programs are intended to serve and cost American taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Congressman Guthrie. “These are commonsense reforms to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in our federal programs, and I am proud to have voted alongside my Republican colleagues in taking action to end fraud and hold bad…
PAYROLL & HR CONTROLS (PREVENTING “GHOST” SCHEMES)
Payroll fraud is often the hardest to detect because it “looks” like a normal business expense.
- Segregation of Duties (SoD): The person who adds new employees to the system must not be the same person who approves the monthly pay run.
- Mandatory Vacation Policy: Require all financial and HR staff to take 5–10 consecutive days of leave annually. Fraud often surfaces when the perpetrator isn’t there to “hide” the trail.
- Ghost Employee Audit: Perform a quarterly “Headcount Reconciliation” where managers must physically verify every name on their payroll list exists.
- Self-Pay Blocking: Ensure the payroll software has a hard-coded block preventing administrators from editing their own salary or bank details.