California Faces Scrutiny Over Estimated $32 Billion COVID-19 Unemployment Fraud

Sacramento, California – Actress and author Justine Bateman has publicly criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom's handling of the state's COVID-19 response and the massive unemployment fraud that occurred under his administration. Bateman's recent social media post accused Newsom of devastating businesses and lives through prolonged lockdowns and demonstrating a lack of oversight over billions in taxpayer funds.

"I want every American to know that Gavin Newsom is the worst thing that ever happened to California. He kept CA shut down during 2020-2023, longer than almost any other place on the planet, destroying businesses and people’s lives. He was extremely committed to that," Bateman stated in her tweet.

California was indeed among the first states to implement a statewide stay-at-home order on March 19, 2020, and maintained various restrictions into 2021. While public health measures aimed to curb the spread of COVID-19, the duration and strictness of California's lockdowns drew significant debate and faced criticism for their economic impact. Some analyses indicate that while early interventions were effective in reducing infection rates, the prolonged nature of some restrictions contributed to economic challenges.

A central point of Bateman's criticism revolves around the California Employment Development Department (EDD) and its handling of unemployment claims during the pandemic. She alleged that Newsom's administration allowed over $30 billion of tax dollars to be disbursed to fraudsters with "NO oversight."

"At the same time, he gave away over $30B of our tax dollars to fraudsters via the EDD, with NO oversight. I know from some people in the CA gov that the directive was 'Get the money out there; we’ll worry about the fraud later.' Needless to say, it was never 'attended to'," Bateman claimed.

Official estimates of EDD fraud during the pandemic range from approximately $20 billion to $32.6 billion, with a significant portion attributed to the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. The state's "pay and chase" policy, which prioritized rapid disbursement of funds over stringent verification in the early days of the pandemic, has been widely cited as a contributing factor to the rampant fraud. As of late 2023, California had only recovered a fraction of the stolen funds.

Bateman concluded her statement with a stark warning about Newsom's potential presidential aspirations. "Caring nothing for his constituents and losing money are Newsom’s specialties. If he runs for President, you do not want him to do the same to the nation." Governor Newsom successfully fended off a recall effort in 2021, which was partly fueled by public discontent over his pandemic policies and the EDD's performance. The criticism from figures like Bateman highlights ongoing concerns about the state's fiscal management and pandemic response.