|
It has been a pleasure seeing so many people attending various summertime events in our district. Summers are short in Minnesota, and our rainy start this year is making it feel even shorter, but people are doing all they can to take advantage of the nice weather while we have it.
New Laws
Several changes in state law took effect this month, including some controversial measures. For example, you'll notice an extra fee on your deliveries, which is part of a laundry list of new taxes passed by the majority totaling nearly $10 billion in extra costs for Minnesota taxpayers (despite an $18 billion surplus). This is just one of many new laws that went into effect on July 1. You can learn more about these laws and other changes here.
Reports of Fraud Continue
From Feeding our Future to frontline worker pay, autism centers and beyond, investigations into reported fraud on taxpayers continue arising in Minnesota.
Recently, news broke that the FBI is investigating Minnesota Autism Centers for possible Medicaid fraud. Reports show the number of providers has increased 700% in the last five years, and payments to those providers has exploded by 3000%. Sources who administer Medical Assistance see widespread concern about fraud in the program.
Previously, the Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) reported that lax administrative standards created opportunities for an estimated $250 million in taxpayer revenue to be the subject of fraud in the Feeding our Future program. At the height of Feeding our Future's fraud, they claimed to serve 12 million meals per month - enough to feed every child in the state more than eight meals. This is government malpractice, and the administration needs to be held accountable for the millions that they've given away to fraudsters.
This news came after the OLA reported it found frontline worker payments were made to people who were not eligible or whose eligibility could not be determined. This included fraudulent duplicate applications including many from people who were deceased long before this program opened. In addition, the Department of Revenue did not verify that all applicants met the adjusted gross income requirements.
Taxpayers deserve accountability and responsibility from our state government. Instead, our state leaders turned a blind eye, offered excuses, and failed to hold program administrators accountable. This underscores, once again, how important it is to restore balance at the Capitol so we can do more to protect taxpayers from fraud.
 60-Day Rule
The end of this week brings us to 60 days past the end of the 2024 legislative session, at which point House members are prohibited from sending e-newsletters until after the November election. I will continue working my hardest to represent the people of our district during this blackout period and remain available to help as needed. I welcome your individual correspondence and thoughts/concerns on whatever issues are most important to you.
Please stay in touch and I hope to see you around at local community events the rest of this summer!
|
