No Funds for Repeat Child Care Violations Act of 2026

Floor Speech

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Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, every cent of taxpayer money should be treated as sacred. It comes directly out of the pockets of hardworking Americans. That is why no amount of fraud in Federal public assistance programs is acceptable. The Government Accountability Office, GAO, recently estimated that the Federal Government loses between $233 billion and $521 billion every year to fraud, based on data from 2018 through 2022.

When the government spends the American people's money, Americans should have confidence that their Federal taxpayer dollars are being used responsibly and carefully.

Recent reporting has revealed shocking degrees of waste, fraud, and abuse in Minnesota's Federal childcare assistance program. According to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, HHS, data, the rate of improper payments in Minnesota's Federal childcare assistance program is nearly twice the national average.

In May 2025, an HHS audit of Minnesota's Federal childcare program found repeated failures to verify attendance and comply with payment requirements.

However, the problem is not limited to Minnesota. Since 2002, the Child Care and Development Block Grant, CCDBG, has been identified as a Federal program at risk for improper payments. The Office of Management and Budget and HHS have all consistently warned that changes are needed to protect the program from waste, fraud, and abuse.

I am proud that this legislation includes my Closing the Provider Fraud Gap Act, which commissions GAO to conduct a study on existing Federal fraud prevention measures in early childhood programs and then report on recommendations to improve fraud prevention.

The Stop Child Care Scam Act is a reasonable and commonsense solution to protect Federal taxpayer dollars from being defrauded.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

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