No Funds for Repeat Child Care Violations Act of 2026

Floor Speech

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Mr. MESSMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Stop Child Care Scams Act, which provides a commonsense path toward preventing the rampant waste, fraud, and abuse in our Federal childcare support programs.

Every year, nearly 2 million children receive State and Federal Child Care and Development Block Grant subsidies totaling over $8 billion. These childcare assistance programs allow lower income parents to stay in the workforce so they can create their own economic independence and contribute to the economic development in their communities.

Under the current program requirements, States are supposed to submit a report detailing any errors that are discovered in the administration of the CCDBG grant fund distributions.

Mistakes are not unusual given the changing nature of childcare, but because there is no penalty, the reporting of fraudulent payments is often ignored.

That is why I am pleased that my Child Care Payment Integrity and Fraud Accountability Act is included in today's bill. It requires that States clearly account for any improper payments that have been made so that Americans can see exactly how their money is being spent and leaders can manage what improvements are needed to best safeguard taxpayer dollars.

Preventing fraud and protecting our citizens' hard-earned money is one of the most important things we should be doing in Congress. Americans deserve an end to the waste, fraud, and abuse poisoning our country. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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