While some Democrats are downplaying the fraud recently exposed in Minnesota, one Democrat Minnesota congresswoman seems to be concerned.
Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., recently reintroduced a piece of legislation she says will “crack down on fraud in federal programs.” The Stop Fraud in Federal Programs Act seeks to increase penalties for federal fraudsters and require third-party audits for one specific U.S. Department of Agriculture-managed program.
“Today I reintroduced my bill to crack down on fraud in federal programs and hold perpetrators accountable,” Craig said in an X post this week.
The first piece of the bill will raise the maximum prison sentence from 10 to 20 years and require the convicted person to pay $250,000, or twice the value of the stolen property, whichever is more.
“We’ve got to restore trust in our government and ensure fraud schemes like Feeding Our Future never happen again,” Craig said in a statement. “That starts with prosecuting criminals to the fullest extent of the law, and my bill that I’ve been working on since 2023 will help us do that.”
The Trump administration is calling Feeding Our Future the largest COVID-19-era fraud scheme charged in the country. The million-dollar nonprofit was supposed to be giving free meals to children as a sponsor of the USDA’s Summer Food Service Program. Attorney General Pam Bondi says this scheme cost the U.S. $300 million to $400 million.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced in early January that the USDA has paused all federal funding, equaling almost $130 million, to Minnesota until the state can provide payment justifications for all grants since January 2025 within 30 days.
The second part of the bill requires third-party audits on all USDA Summer Food Service Programs and the nonprofits that received the funds.
While Craig does seem to be combating fraud, she denies that Minnesota fraud is correlated to the Somali community living in the state. Bondi, however, claims that out of the 78 defendants charged from Feeding Our Future, 72 are of Somali descent and five are fugitives in Africa.
The congresswoman has been active in the media, calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to leave the state. The same week she introduced the Stop Fraud in Federal Programs Act, she also introduced articles of impeachment against Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
Craig was unable to be reached for comment.
