No Funds for Repeat Child Care Violations Act of 2026

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mrs. MILLER of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, H.R. 7726, the Stop Child Care Scams Act, which joins with the administration's efforts to rid the Federal Government of waste, fraud, and abuse.

Last month, President Trump announced serious reforms to safeguard Federal taxpayer dollars spent in the Child Care and Development Block Grant program to ensure that this program is serving the families who need it most. The Stop Child Care Scams Act builds on those actions by enforcing program integrity to ensure every State is compliant with Federal requirements.

Since 2002, the block grant has been identified as a Federal program at risk for improper payments. The Office of Management and Budget, GAO, and HHS have all consistently warned that changes are needed to protect the program from fraud and abuse. In fact, a 2020 GAO report estimated that under the block grant program, there were $325 million in improper payments nationwide during the 2019 fiscal year.

HHS data shows that the rate of improper payments in Minnesota's Federal Child Care Assistance Program is nearly twice the national average. In this case, the State failed to address fraud or repeated noncompliance. This is unacceptable, and there must be real consequences.

In 2024, the owner of several Chicago childcare centers was sentenced to 4 years in prison for stealing more than $3 million of taxpayer funds. That is why I am leading H.R. 7726, the Stop Child Care Scams Act. This bill includes many reforms championed by my colleagues on the Education and Workforce Committee to make commonsense updates to the Child Care and Development Block Grant program so that Federal dollars continue to go to working families, not fraudsters.

Congressman Mark Messmer's Child Care Payment Integrity and Fraud Accountability Act requires States to assess how many block grant payments are fraudulent.

Congressman Glenn Grothman's CRACKDOWN Act lowers the improper payment threshold of grant funds from 10 to 5 percent.

Congressman Bob Onder's Child Care Integrity Monitoring Act requires an audit of State childcare assistance programs every 3 years.

Congresswoman Virginia Foxx's Safeguarding Taxpayer Dollars in Child Care Act prevents fraudulent providers from receiving future grant funds.

Congressman Joe Wilson's No Waivers for Fraud Act leaves sanctions in place for noncompliant States.

Congressman Mike Rulli's Stop Child Care Fraud Act requires States to ensure all relevant agencies have access to necessary data and are examining it to prevent fraud.

Congressman Burgess Owens' Closing the Provider Fraud Gap Act requires GAO to examine the progress that has been made in protecting Federal taxpayer dollars in provider-related programs.

Lastly, my No Funds for Repeat Child Care Violations Act withholds block grant funds from noncompliant States.

Every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar that doesn't support working families. Fraud harms our families. It harms our workforce. Americans should have confidence that their Federal taxpayer dollars are being used responsibly and carefully.

Ensuring accountability for these dollars is not optional. It is sensible, responsible, and a moral choice to protect working families who contribute to our communities and help our local economies thrive.

House Republicans are taking waste, fraud, and abuse seriously, and I urge my colleagues to do the same and support this bill.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source