The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Tuesday froze access to child care and family assistance funds for California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, and New York after widespread concerns over fraud and abuse of state-administered programs.
“Families who rely on child care and family assistance programs deserve confidence that these resources are used lawfully and for their intended purpose,” Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill said in a written statement. “This action reflects our commitment to program integrity, fiscal responsibility, and compliance with federal requirements.”
The HHS will freeze access three programs that the HHS’s Administration for Children and Families (ACF) oversees, which includes the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG).
HHS will restrict:
- $2.4 billion for the CCDF
- $7.35 billion for TANF
- $869 million for the SSBG
The HHS wrote in a press release:
TANF and SSBG are meant to be used by states to support families with children, including assistance with child care costs and other essential services. ACF has also identified concerns that these benefits intended for American citizens and lawful residents may have been improperly provided to individuals who are not eligible under federal law.
The funding freeze amplifies ACF’s recent nationwide activation of its Defend the Spend system, and will now require these five states to submit a justification and receipt documentation before any federal payment is released. ACF has also launched a dedicated fraud reporting portal at childcare.gov to allow parents, providers and community members to report suspected fraud and program misuse.
“We have a responsibility to protect taxpayer dollars and ensure these programs serve the families they were created to help,” said Assistant Secretary for Children and Families Alex J. Adams. “When there are credible concerns about fraud or misuse, we will act.”
The funds to three blue-run states will continue to be frozen until ACF determines that the states are in compliance with federal requirements.
“For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” a health department spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News.
The spokesperson stated that the administration is “ensuring that federal taxpayer dollars are being used for legitimate purposes.”
One senior Trump administration official said that the child care programs were frozen due to “rampant fraud” and that money was given to illegal aliens.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), in response to a post by President Donald Trump claiming that the investigation into fraud in California has begun, called the 47th president a “deranged, habitual liar whose relationship with reality ended years ago.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) called the incoming funding freeze a “frontal assault” on children.
“We will fight this with every fiber of our being because our kids should not be political paws in a fight that Donald Trump seems to have with blue state governors,” she continued.
