Condemning Actors Seeking to Defraud the United States Government, and Expressing the Sense of the House of Representatives That Governmentwide Fraud and Improper Payment Prevention Reforms Will Meaningfully Improve the Financial Prosperity of the United States, and That Federal Program Eligibility Should Be Verified Before Payment

Floor Speech

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1345, I call up the resolution (H. Res. 1335) condemning actors seeking to defraud the United States Government, and expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that governmentwide fraud and improper payment prevention reforms will meaningfully improve the financial prosperity of the United States, and that Federal program eligibility should be verified before payment, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

The Clerk read the title of the resolution.

Mr. Speaker, we are facing a national emergency of fraud in Federal programs that is impacting all Americans. We have watched and been very sad to see the deficit that keeps rising in this country, but it also comes from fraud, whereby money that was spent by the Federal Government is given to people who did not earn and are not entitled to those resources.

According to the Government Accountability Office, the GAO, the Federal Government is estimated to lose between $233 billion and $521 billion annually to fraud against all Federal programs and operations.

This means that the average American taxpayer spends between $1,000 and $3,000 annually just to line the pockets of fraudsters and criminals.

While vulnerable Americans are robbed of benefits, these programs are designed to provide things that we have authorized them for, and they are being stolen. They are being taken advantage of.

It is time that Congress makes sure that the American public understands the true extent of the problem so that Congress can be empowered to enact bold legislation to address fraud in programs.

Mr. Speaker, our chairman, James Comer, chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, listed it as one of the priorities not just for this Congress but for the American people to know that Congress is doing their job. They are doing their job to not only approach and attack this problem, but they are going to make sure that the American people have a clear viewpoint of where this happened, why it is happening, and what Congress intends to do about it.

As a result of my serving as the chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, I have held six hearings where we investigated and looked at not only how and why this happened, but the real question is: What is Congress doing in the Federal Government to make sure that they stop this issue by addressing it?

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a link to a report that was issued by the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which is titled: ``The Cost of Doing Nothing: How Tim Walz and Keith Ellison Fueled Minnesota's Fraud Explosion.'' https://oversight.house.gov/wp- content/uploads/2026/06/MN-Fraud-Final-Staff-Report.pdf

Mr. Speaker, the cost of doing nothing means that we allow it to continue. That is why we are on the floor today, to give the American people a clear answer of not only what happened and how it happened, but also who is responsible for these actions.

I would assume, based upon what I have seen over the last few weeks, that our friends who are Democrats will come to this floor and vote ``no.'' They want to act like they deny what is happening. Yet, during every single one of these hearings, our friends showed up and were very critical and really asked thoughtful questions. They asked questions of how and why and what we are going to do. Today is an opportunity where we will lay out that story for the American people and say this is a national disgrace.

What we are bringing with H. Res. 1335 today will make clear to the American people, from the United States Congress, what we would like to have every single Member understand and vote for because it impacts every single congressional district.

As the father of a disabled young man, a Down syndrome young man, I will tell you that the benefits that my son or others who are disabled count on the Federal Government to be able to properly provide to them, as provided by law, the things that they are entitled to, many other people not only come and make claims that are not true but devise a process by which to take money away from those who it was designed to help.

In every State across the country, fraud in Federal programs has run rampant. That is why you have seen, based upon not just us ringing the bell to let people know, but really the media also speaking up about this national disgrace. It has allowed Governors and people who run local agencies to relook at who they are and what their agencies are doing. It has caused, all across this country, people to go look for these types of circumstances to make sure it is not in their backyard. That is also why we are here today. We will provide a flashlight, a guiding light, to show people what has happened, how it happened, and what we need to do about it.

The Oversight Committee has taken decisive action in this investigation. They have taken time to understand the fraud. They have taken time to make sure they have looked at those actors behind this, what were the reasons why this happened, and who is responsible. It will provide a guiding light for States and counties and cities all across this country to make sure that it is not a disgrace that is being placed upon them.

These programs needed to be highlighted. They needed the review. They needed the light of day. They needed to know the story. That is exactly what this report is.

This report is factually based with data, information, and things that every Member should be willing to support. This is a resolution. It is not changing the law. It is saying we are going to say to the American people: On our watch, these things happened.

I think that it is important to note that there will be things that are uncomfortable. There are things that are uncomfortable that happened.

I don't want to sit here today and just point a finger at any particular person, but you go where the story goes.

The Oversight Committee's investigation into Minnesota social services programs uncovered $9 billion that was potentially stolen by fraudsters. This was very interesting, Mr. Speaker, because it was a systematic understanding of how people went about this, how people turned a blind eye to not only the things that were happening but perhaps even abetted and helped these people to sustain this fraud ring that went on against their own people.

The facts of the case are, the media has showed up, investigators have showed up, and so did our investigators. We had investigators go to places who were receiving millions and millions of dollars which was done across a wide range of things. In Minnesota, it was $9 billion. The money that was stolen by these criminals was taxpayer money. They were taxpayer dollars that were placed there for the benefit of the people in Minnesota. I think that we should have an outrage by the people and those Members of Congress from Minnesota. They should show up here and say: Thank you for helping us. We are not going to go to fight anymore. We are going to go to fix.

That is what this does. This gives a roadmap to not just Members of Congress and not just the media. The American people will get the story, see how it happened and who turned a blind eye to doing their job.

The money that was stolen by these criminals were taxpayer dollars intended to feed children, educate children, take care of those who may have a disability, help low-income seniors, help veterans, and help people who look to the Federal Government.

Our votes here say yes, we want these Federal programs. Yet, the people closest to the action, the people responsible, those who were elected, those with oversight responsibility, those who have prosecutorial responsibilities, those who had a job to be a part not just of the American way of doing business but a part of what our democracy is, turned a blind eye to the facts, reality, and the things that were going on right underneath their noses.

Meanwhile, senior State officials, including the Governor and the Attorney General, both former colleagues of ours who distinguished themselves in this body, were aware of this widespread fraud for years.

Mr. Speaker, that is a story in and of itself. These officials possessed the legal and prosecutorial authority to stop fraud payments but repeatedly failed to not only hear the warnings but to act against those who were whistleblowers. They retaliated against those who did bring that to them.

This is something that needs to be available for every Governor in every State and territory. When you ignore doing your job, there are people who will pay attention. There are questions that will be asked, and there is going to be some sort of review.

I will tell you, the American people are tired. They are tired of people in elected places who will turn a blind eye to not just the responsibility but with the knowledge that this was intended for maybe someone in their family, certainly someone in their community.

When we talk about education, disability payments, poor people, helping widows, helping veterans, that is the story that is being told today.

In April of this year, Federal authorities raided more than 20 locations in Minnesota as part of the ongoing Federal investigation. This included the Quality Learning Center. The self-named Quality Learning Center, was a so-called childcare center with no children being found, yet millions of dollars being sucked down by fraudsters. Fraud in Minnesota became just the tip of the iceberg in this instance as we saw.

Whether it is widespread fraud in California in the hospice system or fraud in the Medicare waiver program in Ohio or New York, it is clear that our local, elected officials, who have the responsibility, need to pay attention to the clear warnings that are being made.

The Trump administration has taken decisive action to combat fraud, waste, and abuse by establishing the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.

Since March, the task force has uncovered hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of fraud just in the State of California, including other government contracts that should go to women, children, veterans, and people with disabilities.

H. Res. 1335, sponsored by the gentleman from Texas Congressman Pat Fallon and those on the subcommittee and committee, emphasize that these schemes across the country harm the American taxpayer and the vulnerable recipients who expect to receive them. Congress must condemn these actions and make sure they are available.

I encourage each of the Members who will be voting today to understand the real need of what we are doing here today. It is more than just a Paul Revere call to action. It is an actual story about how local people turned a blind eye, retaliated against those who came and provided feedback, and then did nothing and waited until billions of dollars were wasted.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that what I am doing here today is giving an open invitation to all the Members of this body to come and see this for what it is. It is available to them. It is something that everyone has seen the story.

The question is: Will we today, openly, as a body, understand that this is something that happened in their backyard or could be in their backyard, and they need to use this story. Today, an ``aye'' vote will do just that.

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time remains on both sides, please.

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I do want to respond to the gentleman. I do want to respond to the gentleman and tell him today is that open invitation. He and I know that this is a lot of work, work that is factually based. It is not just showing up--and I don't doubt anything he has said--but showing up with the evidence of who, how, where, why did this happen, and what is being done. I would just say that the gentleman knows that our Government Operations Subcommittee is ready and open and available--that he would have to admit here on the floor-- on a bipartisan basis.

If the gentleman wants to use the word ``bipartisan'' and say this is an attack, then bring the things that he would want us also to look at, but please don't make this political because we have done our homework, because we have aimed at where the problem is, because we have done these hearings. We have had people directly in front of us with their hands raised. We did the work. We did the facts of the case, and I think--

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Mr. SESSIONS. The gentleman has his own time. He has 23 minutes.

The gentleman needs to understand that he, too, sits at one of these tables where they can have witnesses called. They can have their staff do these things, and they can go investigate. They know that perhaps most of all, I will be very open to listening to them.

That is because if there is one thing I have done over the last few years, and when I was chairman of the Rules Committee, it is to listen to other people and to try to at least offer to the body an opportunity to see the facts of the case.

I think it is an easy thing to come down here--and I respect the gentleman. I make sure that he is involved in all of our hearings, but to come down here without evidence or hard work and make claims, I think, is a very difficult thing when we are expected, as Members of Congress and our staffs, to do these things right.

Mr. Speaker, we want to continue the story.

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Mr. SESSIONS. This resolution that we are going to vote on today highlights fraud in Ohio, a Republican-led State. It is right in the report. It is right here.

This Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has also had an ongoing investigation, including Medicare fraud in Ohio. The committee held a hearing on that Medicaid fraud in Ohio just last week. Just last week, both the staffs were aware of that, and we brought in Ohio State officials to testify to get them on record just like we did, as the gentleman knows, in Minnesota and other States. I appreciate the gentleman asking the question.

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, I will answer that question, and the answer is clear: The State of Texas that has that authority and responsibility did that in extensive hearings and extensive reports that led up to action by the State of Texas officially in the legislature to bring him before them, and he has answered every question he could have answered. It is on the record and there for all the world to see.

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman knows that not only am I open to this, but my door is open in my office. It is open for a reason. It is open for a reason, not just for those who might agree with me, but for those who might disagree with me or those who might want to do business. My door is open. My availability is there.

I believe that the issues today that we are trying to talk about are fraud, not politics, and we have attempted to look at fraud where it is. The gentleman knows where my office is, and he knows I am open.

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Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman has an opportunity to bring forth more than public data. He has the ability to go and take testimony, to gather the information. I encourage the gentleman to do that.

Mr. Speaker, the American people and Members of Congress have heard the story today: 200-plus pages of factual data, six hearings, and the opportunity on a bipartisan basis to develop the facts of the case from people's own testimony.

Today, we have a request for us to listen to the minority. This has been done for the last year and a half; opportunity for hearings, opportunity for their staff to develop the same kind of factually based information, not public data, not something that they read somewhere but to bring to the floor, to bring to the subcommittee and the committee, the hard facts of the case.

Mr. Speaker, I think we have made our point today, and that point is that there were people who were elected who chose not only to not listen but, when people came forward who were whistleblowers, they took retaliatory action against them. They have denied their involvement, and, yet, the mounds of data suggest otherwise.

Mr. Speaker, I think today this subcommittee and this committee are bringing forth, through Mr. Fallon's resolution, an opportunity to say enough is enough. It should be a story that is told by every one of us. We invite their vote.

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