House report accuses Minnesota officials of ignoring fraud warnings as early as 2019, costing billions

WASHINGTON (KFGO-WCCO) — A congressional report released Monday accuses senior Minnesota officials, including Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, of ignoring clear warnings of widespread fraud in federally funded social programs as early as 2019, and retaliating against state employees who tried to raise concerns.

The 205-page report was released by the Republican-led House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Committee investigators allege state officials had the authority to stop payments and ban fraudulent providers but repeatedly failed to act. The report estimates roughly $300 million in meal program fraud and also flags potentially $9 billion more in questionable Medicaid payments.

The report also alleges that state employees who raised concerns about fraud faced retaliation and intimidation.

“Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison are responsible for one of the most stunning oversight failures this Committee has ever examined,” committee Chairman James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, said. “Billions of dollars were stolen because Minnesota state leaders turned a blind eye to rampant fraud and retaliated against state employees who dared to raise concerns.”

Comer also sent a letter to Vice President JD Vance, urging the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud to conduct a thorough review of Minnesota’s social services programs dating back to 2019.

Both Walz and Ellison have appeared before the House Oversight Committee in the wake of the Feeding Our Future fraud case. In March, Comer questioned both officials on why payments from programs impacted by fraud were not stopped sooner. Walz responded, “We’re not going to stop payments that feed children until we have the proof that things happened.” Ellison said his office “doesn’t have the authority to do a stop payment.”

A spokesperson for Ellison on Monday said his office “disagrees with much of the contents of the report and believes it mischaracterizes much of what actually happened,” adding “the report seems to significantly misunderstand the authority of the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.”