The Trump administration said it had “reason to believe” California has been funneling social safety net benefits to illegal immigrants — as it paused $10 million in child care funds to the Golden State.
The Administration for Children and Families said in a series of letters that it was immediately putting the brakes on the federal funding as it demanded that Gov. Gavin Newsom turn over a list of people and vendors getting money from three specific programs.
ACF Secretary Alex J. Adams said in the letters that the federal government is concerned about “the potential for extensive and systemic fraud.”
“These concerns have been heightened by recent federal prosecutions and additional allegations that substantial portions of federal resources were fraudulently diverted away from the American families they were intended to assist,” Adams said in the letters, which were dated Tuesday.
“Additionally, ACF has reason to believe that the State of California is illicitly providing illegal aliens with…benefits intended for American citizens and lawful permanent residents.”
The affected programs are the Golden State’s Child Care Development Fund (CCDF), the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, and the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) program.
The CCDF and SSBG letters demanded California turn over “verified attendance documentation” for subsidized child care services, including logs of hours and payment info from providers.
The TANF letter asked for recipients’ names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth.
The Trump administration is cutting off more than $10 billion in social services and child care funding meant for a handful of Democrat-led states, officials told The Post Monday. AFP via Getty Images
The demands come in the wake of a massive fraud scandal that rocked Minneapolis nonprofits linked to the Somali community, where scammers allegedly set up phony nonprofits so they could steal funds for social safety-net programs including homeless services and daycare.
The federal government has claimed as much as $9 billion in funds have been misspent in Minnesota, where Gov. Tim Walz dropped a re-election bid amid questions about state oversight of the taxpayer money.
The California Post is coming soon. Sign up for updates.
Get in early. Be the first to know about launch and home delivery.
Thanks for signing up!
President Trump then turned his attention the Golden State in a Tuesday morning Truth Social post, announcing a “fraud investigation of California has begun.
“California, under Governor Gavin Newscum, is more corrupt than Minnesota, if that’s possible,” Trump said, using his unflattering nickname for Newsom. “The Fraud Investigation of California has begun.”
CCDF is a federal program that provides grants to states, territories, and tribes. It helps low-income families pay for child care, improves child care quality for all children, and supports parents.
Minnesota has been at the center of allegations that child care programs are perpetrating fraud after a viral video from YouTuber Nick Shirley alleged nearly a dozen day cares had no kids attending. LP Media for NY Post
TANF is a federal block grant program that offers temporary cash assistance and support services to low-income families with children.