In another major blow against the fraud apparatus that many conservatives allege dominates blue states, Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced that her SBA had shut down a massive 112,000 suspected fraudsters in California alone, and suspects nearly $9 billion in fraud was committed by them.
Specifically, Loeffler revealed in a statement that her SBA has suspended a whopping 111,620 California borrowers linked to what the SBA suspects was fraudulent activity connected to the SBA’s pandemic-era loan programs, with the total amount of alleged fraud totaling more than $8.6 billion. The fraud primarily targeted the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans.
Such is what the SBA announced in an official press release put out on Friday, February 6, 2026, saying, “Today, following a visit to San Diego, U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced that the agency has suspended 111,620 California borrowers amid suspected fraudulent activity across SBA pandemic-era loan programs. In total, these borrowers received 118,489 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans totaling over $8.6 billion.”
Continuing, the SBA connected this major crackdown to another large crackdown, this one in Minnesota, saying, “These latest suspensions follow SBA’s recent action in Minnesota, where the agency also announced it suspended 6,900 borrowers associated with 7,900 potentially fraudulent PPP and EIDL loans worth approximately $400 million.”
Then, describing what sort of consequences those who have been suspended face as the SBA investigates further, it noted, “Suspended borrowers are prohibited from executing new small business and disaster loans and are not eligible for other SBA programs such as federal contracting in the 8(a) Business Development Program.”
Putting this in the context of the massive fraud problem that Biden allegedly refused to get a grip on, the SBA then said, “Since Day One, the Trump SBA has worked to crack down on an estimated $200 billion in pandemic era-fraud that went unaddressed during the Biden Administration.”
Further, it noted that further charges will be coming against the fraudsters, saying, The agency recently partnered with Palantir to expand the nationwide investigation into PPP and EIDL abuse, and continues to coordinate with federal law enforcement partners to pursue recoveries, civil penalties, and criminal sentences where appropriate. The agency will also continue to partner with the SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG) to pursue additional potential fraud in California and in states across the nation.”
"*" indicates required fields
Administrator Loeffler, for her part, was quoted in the statement as saying, “Once again, the Trump SBA is taking decisive action to deliver accountability in a state whose unaccountable welfare policies have created a culture of fraud and abuse at the expense of law-abiding taxpayers and small business owners.”
She added, “Today, we announced we have suspended nearly 112,000 borrowers tied to at least $9 billion in suspected fraud. This staggering number represents the most significant crack-down on those who defrauded pandemic programs, and it illuminates the scale of corruption that the Biden Administration tolerated for years.”
She concluded, “As we did in Minnesota, we are actively working with federal law enforcement to identify the criminals who defrauded American taxpayers, hold them to account, and recoup the stolen funds. As we continue our state-by-state work, our message is clear: pandemic-era fraudsters will not get a pass under this Administration.”
Watch yet more fraud in California get revealed here: