 Legislative Auditor Judy Randall, right, reviews a 2023 report on state-funded grants to non-profit organizations during the first meeting of the House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy Committee Feb. 10. (Photo by Michele Jokinen)
On the day testimony began at the trial of the alleged ringleader in the Feeding Our Future scandal, a new House committee began working toward better preventing state grant dollars from being inappropriately spent.
Rep. Kristin Robbins (R-Maple Grove) chairs the House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy Committee.
“We are currently sitting at about $610 million in fraud over the last six years in the state of Minnesota,” she said. “Not only is that an appalling waste of taxpayer’s hard-earned money, it is also an indictment of state agency’s failure to serve the people who really need services.
“The mission of this committee is to ensure taxpayer money is not going to the greedy but is going to serve the needy. … It’s our job to get to the root of these problems and put in place systems that stop fraud before it happens.”
Referencing a 2023 report, officials from the Office of the Legislative Auditor said state-funded grant expenditures to nonprofit organizations averaged $514 million between fiscal years 2018-22. Of the roughly 2,400 recipients, the average grant was $68,000. Read more
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