Treasury Secretary Bessent Cracks Down on Fraud, Promises Massive Tax Refunds

Listeners, Scott Bessent has been in the headlines over the past few days for two big moves as Secretary of the Treasury, one focused on cracking down on suspected fraud and terror finance links, and another centered on promising unusually large tax refunds for American households next year.

According to Alpha News and a report originally published by The Epoch Times, Bessent announced on December twelfth that the Treasury Department will impose what he called enhanced reporting requirements on certain money transfer businesses that send funds to high risk regions such as Somalia. He said some money service firms will also receive formal notices of investigations, with Internal Revenue Service teams brought in to scrutinize flows that may be tied to what he has described as a massive welfare fraud ring based in Minnesota. That probe was launched after City Journal published an investigation alleging that Minnesota taxpayer funded welfare fraud was helping finance the extremist group Al Shabaab. Bessent has emphasized that under President Donald Trump the Treasury will use geographic targeting orders to force more detailed reporting from money transmitters in specific locations, funneling that information to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and then to law enforcement to pursue potential money laundering and terror finance networks.

At the same time, Bessent has been making news on the domestic tax front. In an interview highlighted by Fox Business and also covered by outlets such as AOL and The Economic Times, he said American households should expect what he called very large refunds in the tax filing season early next year, thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a recent Trump backed tax law. Because the law was passed in July and included retroactive tax relief, many workers did not adjust their paycheck withholding. Bessent projected that total refunds could reach one hundred billion to one hundred fifty billion dollars, which he estimated could translate into roughly one thousand to two thousand dollars per household. He also pointed out that once workers do change their withholding, they should feel a more permanent boost in take home pay in twenty twenty six. The law also extends lower tax rates and higher standard deductions that were set to expire, preventing what would have been a broad tax hike.

These two stories together show Bessent trying to balance aggressive enforcement on suspected fraud and terror linked money flows, while simultaneously selling a message of tax relief and higher disposable income for working Americans.

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