Ron Wyden

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, every bit-- every bit--of real fraud needs to be rooted out. Unfortunately, the Trump fraud policy is not about that.

The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress have begun to make a habit out of calling any Federal policy they don't like ``undeserving fraud": Medicaid, fraudulent; Affordable Care Act coverage, fraudulent; SNAP, fraudulent; childcare, fraudulent; Social Security, fraudulent; kids with disabilities who need Medicaid for home care, fraudsters; small business owners with ACA plans, fraudsters; families who need help paying for groceries, fraudsters; working parents who need childcare, fraudsters; seniors living paycheck to paycheck, fraudsters.

Americans are struggling to afford necessities--food and electricity and medical care. The Republican solution to these challenges is to create more hoops, more redtape, more cuts. The result is more pain and suffering for Americans in need and higher costs for families.

When it comes to fighting fraud, there are proven approaches that we can use right now.

Earlier this summer, I introduced bipartisan legislation with Chairman Crapo, the senior Senator from Iowa, and Senator Cortez Masto that provides a sustainable funding boost to the cops on the beat at the Office of Inspector General at HHS. This organization is so good at what it does that it recovers up to $12 in fraud for every $1 spent on resources. My view is that is a no-brainer.

Senator Ernst's bill is chock-full of automatic triggers, privacy violations, and power grabs for Trump's false-flag schemes on fraud. It is nothing more than a veiled attempt to make life harder for the working families that I was just talking about, who need help with the rising costs of healthcare, childcare, and more.

For example, an automatic HHS investigation is triggered if a childcare provider's payments increase by 10 percent or more in a 6- month period. That increase could be triggered for reasonable situations: The provider is simply serving more kids, serving kids with disabilities, or creating more slots for infants.

The prospect of a Federal investigation, if they increase their enrollment or care for more infants, would deter many providers from expanding their services, making it even more difficult for families to afford good healthcare and childcare.

The bottom line is this government overreach wouldn't fight actual fraud. It would make it harder and more expensive for families to get the care and support they need.

In addition to funding the cops on the street, I am also squarely focused on going after the greatest source of fraud: sophisticated corporations and the ultrarich using well-heeled lawyers and accountants to flout the Federal laws to avoid paying what they owe or bilking billions from taxpayers.

In my view, that ought to be the focus of Congress' efforts to fight fraud.

For those reasons, I object.

Mr. President, I rise to express the strongest possible support for the Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act.

Senate Democrats began working on this more than a decade ago when I first became chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

This bipartisan legislation contains more than 60 tax reforms to improve tax policy for the American people. It cracks down, in particular, on shady tax prep services that scam low-income Americans to make a quick buck. For too long, taxpayers have been victimized by these shady tax preparers. They file returns that overclaim refunds; they pocket excessive fees from their customers; and then they leave the taxpayers struggling to repay the IRS for the erroneous tax returns the scammer filed on their behalf.

These updates will help ensure refunds get out the door on time. It will improve customer service at the IRS, and it will make it easier for taxpayers to get the help they need during filing season.

The bill contains provisions championed by Members--and I want to emphasize this--on both sides of the aisle. I could stand here all day describing how these provisions are going to improve service for taxpayers, but I am going to name just a few in the interest of time.

The bill includes provisions championed by Senators Warnock and Warner that will digitize tax returns, expand online services, and make it easier for taxpayers to know when they will be getting their refunds. A provision championed by Senator Bennet protects access to the Earned Income Tax Credit. A provision authored by Senator Welch would expand access to critical low-income taxpayer clinic services for taxpayers who have a dispute with the IRS. It includes an important provision by Senator Coons which reduces unnecessary tax burdens on Americans held hostage abroad, and a bill that I worked on with Senator Hassan that helps ensure that whistleblowers will receive the recognition they deserve for blowing the whistle on wealthy tax cheats.

So there has been an extraordinary amount of hard work that goes into this. I wish to yield now to my Northwest partner, and as we say in Oregon: This bill is no small potatoes.

I yield to my friend.

Just last week, it was reported that the Trump administration intends to develop public land in several States, including Oregon, to build new data centers.

Since he took office, Donald Trump and his allies have taken every opportunity--every opportunity--to chip away at what belongs to the American people, all in an effort to boost profits for corporations and secure bigger campaign support for themselves.

Public lands are owned and paid for by the American people--our taxpayers. The people get to decide what to do with their public lands, not the big corporations and especially not Donald Trump.

By now, it is well proven that all too often these facilities place massive demands on local utility grids and scarce water supply. In Western States like mine, this is especially troubling as we are facing very serious drought conditions.

My legislation gives Congress a chance to stop these corporate land grabs before they do more damage. This is an opportunity to reject the effective privatization of America's beloved public lands and protect them for future generations of hunters and anglers and hikers and campers.

Congress must not let the Trump administration establish a dangerous precedent, a precedent that our public lands are a fire-sale inventory for development by the highest bidder.

I urge any Member of this body that cares about preserving our public lands and putting a stop to Trump's taxpayer rip-offs to support my bill.

So, Mr. President, as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 5658, submitted earlier today; further, that the bill be considered read three times and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I will just be very brief.

The fact is, that can't happen because the reality is, these lands are already being developed in my home State and across the West right now. This is an immediate threat to public lands that we have the opportunity and a requirement to address today in order to protect them.

You can't wait to set something up--the way that my colleague from Kentucky is talking about--while Trump runs roughshod over America's public lands.

I am going to be back in this body again and again until we get a balanced approach to protection with respect to these issues, which we are not getting today because of my colleague's objection.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following fellows in my office be given floor privileges for the remainder of the 119th Congress: Alandrea Harris, Stephanie Meredith, Jada Owens, Dana Moffat, Kathleen Hart, and Jessica Nielson.