Pro-Palestinian group Jewish Voice for Peace to pay $677,634 to resolve Covid fraud

The CARES Act, enacted in 2020 to provide financial relief during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowed businesses to apply for loans to sustain operations. However, entities primarily engaged in political or lobbying activities were explicitly prohibited from receiving second-draw loans.

When applying for the loan, A Jewish Voice for Peace certified that it was “not a business concern or entity primarily engaged in political or lobbying activities, including any entity that is organized for research or for engaging in advocacy in areas such as public policy or political strategy or otherwise describes itself as a think tank in any public documents.”

However, an investigation led by Assistant US Attorney Stephen DeGenaro and Auditor Timothy Hurley revealed that the organization was actively engaged in political advocacy, according to the Department of Justice. The organization claimed the misstatements were inadvertent.

US Attorney Matthew Graves highlighted the program's intent to support eligible businesses impacted by the pandemic. “When business owners unfairly drain those funds – either by not reading the eligibility requirements or disregarding them – they put the entire program at risk. In the end, those who are harmed are the businesses that actually qualified for and needed the money, and the taxpayers who funded the program,” Graves said.

JVP is an anti-zionist activist group that publicly condemns Israel. The organization had previously organized a letter campaign to members of Congress to enact an arms embargo against the Jewish state, according to the Jerusalem Post.

The organization has about 30 active chapters on college campuses and often works alongside the anti-Israel group Students for Justice In Palestine, according to the ADL. It has been responsible for aiding and abetting protests and riots on college campuses since Hamas' October 7, 2023 terrorist attack on Israel. JVP has also blamed Israel, not Hamas, for the October 7 attack that resulted in over 1,200 Israelis killed.

"We applaud the courage and determination of students all over the country who are peacefully protesting for an end to U.S. support to the Israeli military and calling on their own universities to divest from the Israeli military," said JVP's executive director Stefani Fox in a statement to Newsweek last year.

JVP has promoted anti-Israel sentiment under the guise of being a Jewish organization. Fox added that "countless Jewish students" participate in the protests, saying, "It is not antisemitic to protest the actions of the Israeli government which is waging a genocidal campaign on Gaza."

Under the False Claims Act, violators can be required to pay three times the amount of damages, plus penalties. If found liable, JVP could have faced a penalty of three times the loan amount plus interest and civil fines. However, the group agreed to settle by paying twice the loan amount, totaling $677,634.

Small Business Administration (SBA) General Counsel Therese Meers also commented on the settlement, praising the federal agencies that identify and address fraudulent conduct.

“The favorable settlement in this case is the product of enhanced efforts by federal agencies such as the Small Business Administration working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, SBA’s Office of Inspector General and other Federal law enforcement agencies, as well as private individuals who uncover fraudulent conduct to recover the product of this fraud as well as penalties,” she stated.