Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Chamber Opposes False Claims Bill
The Maryland Chamber opposes legislation that would create a new private cause of action at the state level for enforcing state fraud statutes. The bill, SB 830, would authorize a person to file suit on behalf of the state for an alleged false claim and recover up to 30 percent of the proceeds, plus attorney’s fees and costs.
Maryland Chamber Vice President of Government Affairs Ron Wineholt urged members of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee to oppose the bill. The Chamber opposes this legislation because it is an inefficient means of enforcing fraud statutes and will add duplicative new layers of penalties for offense that are already illegal under existing state and federal law.
“While we support vigorous enforcement of the law against persons attempting to defraud the state, we do not endorse creating a new private cause of action at the state level for individuals to pursue these claims. It is the state’s job to enforce state law.”
For more information, contact Ron Wineholt at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
