OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

No Funds for Repeat Child Care Violations Act of 2026

Floor Speech

By: Bob Onder
By: Bob Onder
Date: June 3, 2026
Location: Washington, DC

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. ONDER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Walberg for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 7726, the Stop Child Care Scams Act. This package will punish bad actors who steal taxpayer dollars from low-income families who need childcare resources the most.

While fraud and theft may be a time-honored tradition in Somalia, defrauding American taxpayers has consequences. When Nick Shirley blew the lid on the pervasive childcare fraud in Minnesota's Somali community, the infamous Quality Learing Center was forced to shut down. The Somali mastermind of the Feeding Our Future scheme was charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States, and Governor Tim Walz was forced to drop his reelection bid.

House Republicans are restoring integrity to the Child Care and Development Block Grant program which serves about 10 percent of all children in the childcare system. Any waste, fraud, and abuse is an attack on working families and must be rooted out. This legislation will greatly improve oversight of Federal childcare program expenditures and hold fraudsters accountable.

I appreciate the chairman including legislation I introduced, the Child Care Integrity Monitoring Act, in this bill. My bill will restore public trust in the childcare system by codifying HHS' 3-year audit cycle of expenditures, which the Department has been required to do since 2007.

My bill also gives HHS the power to designate States as high risk if they fail their audit, neglect to carry out a corrective action plan, or become noncompliant with their own State plan.

House Republicans will never stop fighting waste, fraud, and abuse because we will not tolerate benefits being stolen from working families. By ensuring that Federal childcare dollars are spent wisely, the Stop Child Care Scams Act of 2026 will improve the quality of life for countless working moms and dads and their children.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage all Members to support this legislation.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT


Source
arrow_upward