Minnesota officials cancel housing program, citing fraud concerns
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Gov. Tim Walz 's administration announced Friday it will seek to shut down the Housing Stabilization Services program, which federal investigators recently warned is " extremely vulnerable to fraud ."
Why it matters: The housing initiative's failure raises many of the same questions as the "Feeding Our Future" pandemic aid fraud about Minnesota officials' ability to prevent waste and abuse in state programs.
The latest: The Minnesota Department of Human Services suspended payments to 77 housing stabilization providers "based on credible allegations of fraud," state officials wrote in a letter .
What they're saying: "The governor fully supports this decisive action to ensure fraudulent actors do not receive another penny," Walz spokesperson Claire Lancaster told Axios, adding that the governor has been taking broader actions to tighten controls in state programs.
The other side: "It's too little, too late," House Speaker Lisa Demuth (R-Cold Spring) said in a statement.
- "Once again, state agencies failed to catch fraud in real time. Instead of stopping it, they're scrambling after the fact," Demuth added.
Stunning stat: The program — which was supposed to cost $2.6 million a year — disbursed more than $107 million in payments last year, the Star Tribune reported .
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This comes on top of the 250 million "feeding our future" ripoff. Hard to believe people claimed the governor who this continues to happen over was competent.
“Hard to believe people claimed the governor who this continues to happen over was competent.”
Hard to believe some said he was a moderate too. How far wacked out left does one need to be to consider walz a moderate?