U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, addressed concerns about fraud in federal child care funding during a committee hearing on Thursday. Cassidy is leading initiatives to stop misuse of these funds, including the launch of a task force and calls for accountability from outgoing Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
The HELP Committee is responsible for legislating on public health, education, workforce issues and retirement programs to protect health and support worker rights, according to its official website at https://www.help.senate.gov/. In the current Congress, Bill Cassidy serves as the committee’s chair.
During his remarks, Cassidy said: "As a dad, there's many beliefs and values to instill in your children. One is the value of a dollar. You work hard for money, you should be wise how it is spent."
He continued: "When government spends money, people in Louisiana have one request – we expect it to be used responsibly, demanding that resources go to those who need them most."
Cassidy highlighted longstanding warnings from Minnesota’s Office of the Legislative Auditor about fraud since 2018. He noted that “1 in every 10 dollars spent on child care in Minnesota is stolen or misused,” with similar problems reported in other safety net programs such as nutrition and Medicaid.
While he acknowledged that Minnesota’s situation drew attention to the issue, Cassidy stated: "I want to be clear that this isn’t just a Minnesota problem... This is an American problem."
He pointed out variation among states: “Texas has an error rate... of 0.4 percent. Again, compare that to Minnesota’s 9 percent! Or how about Oregon’s 35%! Louisiana is around 6 percent and there are regular unannounced inspections of child care providers.”
Cassidy described efforts in Louisiana where biometric verification was previously used to confirm enrollment but was later discontinued: “Unfortunately, that system was later eliminated and the error rate has gone up some. But this is the type of accountability that every state should adopt.”
He referenced limits on current support: “The Child Care Development Fund is only able to serve about 1.4 million low-income working families out of the 8 million eligible. Every dollar misspent is a dollar not going to children and working families.”
Cassidy also announced new measures: “That why this committee launched a Fraud Task Force last month to expose fraud around the country and to act.”
He thanked Senators Moody and Marshall for leading the Health Task Force; Tuberville and Husted for Education; Mullin and Scott for Labor and Pensions.
Both parties were criticized by Cassidy for not sufficiently addressing fraud: “The American people are demanding action. The only way this fraud stops is if Congress... enacts new laws.”
He plans proposals soon: “In the coming weeks I will be putting forward proposals to strengthen the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act to stop the fraud.”
Witnesses included Dr. Paula Polito from Jefferson Parish, Louisiana—invited for her experience with anti-fraud measures—and Mr. Wilde from Wisconsin who helped overhaul oversight efforts there.
Cassidy concluded: “We need to ensure children receive the child care that we are paying for and stop fraudsters from stealing money from taxpayers... That is something Republicans, Democrats, and everyone should support.”
The HELP Committee also influences federal regulations affecting health and education nationwide while providing oversight of relevant laws and agencies such as FDA and NIH (https://www.help.senate.gov/).
For further information or updates from HELP Republicans visit their website or Twitter at @GOPHELP.
