The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has launched an investigation to determine whether Democrats are using American taxpayer dollars to fund an online, abusive sex scandal catering to inmates on death row.
All California prisoners are given “free” government-issued tablets meant for “education, rehabilitation, family communication, and reentry support proven to reduce crime,” according to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
However, an investigation by City Journal found the tablets offer prisoners an opportunity to “sexually exploit women and minors from their jail cells.”
Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., called the alleged fraud and corruption a “pattern” of liberal leadership.
Comer and Oversight Committee members Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, and Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., suspect Newsom may be using federal grant money to pay for the tablets. They sent him a letter demanding that he hand over all relevant information detailing the initiative’s funding by June 9.
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“We’ve got kids in public schools in vital need of technology to learn,” Comer said. “These are our next generation of leaders, our next generation of the workforce, and they are being neglected in liberal states because they want to provide luxury items to inmates.”
This “rehabilitation” initiative, in which California provides inmates with generic flat-screen tablets, was launched in 2018. In 2026, the state began upgrading the devices. Newsom recently signed a new contract with Securus Technologies, agreeing to pay nearly $190 million for 90,000 tablets—roughly $2,000 per tablet.
The $190 million comes from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which is funded by California taxpayers. However, the letter notes that the department has received nearly $500 million in federal funds, which could have supplemented the tablet program. The lawmakers specifically cited $70 million from the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant program, $16.5 million from the Second Chance Act, and $410 million in Medicaid funding.
“Congress did not authorize the Byrne JAG program, the Second Chance Act, or any other federal criminal justice grant so California could build an environment for convicted felons to use state-issued, taxpayer-funded devices to sexually exploit children or view pornography,” the lawmakers wrote to Newsom.
The letter cites an example from the City Journal investigation involving Nathaniel Ray Diaz, who was convicted in 2023 of sexual crimes against a 12-year-old girl. Diaz allegedly used his state-issued tablet to contact the victim from his jail cell, sexually exploiting her thousands of times through messages and phone calls.
The Oversight Committee has launched multiple investigations into states allegedly taking advantage of federal programs and propping up institutions accused of defrauding the federal government.
Gill, newly appointed chairman of the Task Force on Defending Constitutional Rights and Exposing Institutional Abuses, recently launched an investigation into a $250 million Medicare fraud scheme uncovered in Ohio.
Burchett serves as chairman of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency. Nearly a year after initiating an investigation into Planned Parenthood’s alleged misuse of $800 million in federal funding, the organization has yet to fully comply with document requests.
“As of now—nearly one year later—Planned Parenthood has yet to fully comply with the subcommittee’s letter and provide the requested documents and communications,” Burchett said.
The committee’s letter to Newsom notes that under House Rule X, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is the principal oversight committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and has broad authority to investigate “any matter [at] any time.”
Newsom did not immediately return the Daily Signal’s request for comment.
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