Minnesota Fraud Probe Could End with Criminal Referrals, Says House Oversight Chairman
A House of Representatives committee report alleges that top Minnesota officials were aware of widespread fraud in state social services for years and did not take adequate action.
– The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, led by Chairman James Comer, says its interim findings show Minnesota Governor Tim walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison knew about fraud and may have misled the public.
– The committee says the Justice Department could receive criminal referrals as investigators move beyond denials to determine who knew what and why action wasn’t taken.
– Comer cites reporting suggesting walz and others were aware; he hedges on whether it constitutes a crime, noting that incompetence is not a crime but referrals could follow if ties to Ellison or Walz are shown.
– Whistleblowers alleged that political considerations prevented reporting or stopping fraud,including concerns about offending a large Somali voting bloc.
– The interim report, titled “The Cost of Doing Nothing: How Tim Walz and Keith Ellison fueled Minnesota’s Fraud Explosion,” relies on nine interviews and documents and claims senior officials were aware of fraud as early as 2019 (DHS) and by April 2020 (DOE).
– The document asserts agencies kept funds flowing despite red flags due to fears of litigation and negative political backlash, leading to billions of dollars being misused.
– Republicans say Democrats asked far fewer questions than Republicans during interviews, criticizing the handling of the inquiry.
– The findings include allegations of a broader breakdown in oversight and accountability within state government.
– the report and related materials were released by the committee and cited in statements and social media posts accompanying the narrative.
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer says his committee’s report on social services fraud in Minnesota confirmed that top state officials knew fraud was taking place on their watch.
He said that information being d with the Justice Department is likely to include criminal referrals as the committee gets past denials and delves into who knew what and failed to act.
“We’ve given [the Justice Department] the report today that shows Walz and them knew,” Comer said, according to Just the News.
“I don’t know that it’s a crime. Incompetence isn’t a crime, unfortunately … but at the end of the day, if some of these fraudsters implicate a coordination with Attorney General Ellison or Gov. Walz, then I think that you could see some referrals from the committee,” Comer said.
Let me remind Governor Walz of his own state constitution, which he swore an oath to uphold. The governor may be impeached for malfeasance or nonfeasance in the performance of official duties. The billions in fraud he allowed to be perpetrated —with whistleblowers ignored and… pic.twitter.com/AaQpOApV3u
— Congressman Nick Langworthy (@RepLangworthy) March 4, 2026
Comer said whistleblowers have told his committee that Democratic Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison did not blow the whistle on fraud in Somali-affiliated organizations due to political considerations.
Whistleblowers “came forward because they were appalled that Walz and Ellison would not do anything about the fraud, and they knew it was because of political reasons, 100 percent political. They didn’t want to offend the Somali population, which was a massive voting bloc for the Democrat Party,” Comer said
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has filed an interim report titled, “The Cost of Doing Nothing: How Tim Walz and Keith Ellison Fueled Minnesota’s Fraud Explosion.”
“The interim report, based on transcribed interviews with nine Minnesota state employees and documents obtained to date, includes new explosive testimony revealing that senior officials in Minnesota state government — including Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison — were aware for years of widespread fraud, deliberately misled the American people about their knowledge of the fraud, possessed clear authority to safeguard taxpayer dollars, and repeatedly failed to take meaningful action,” according to a news release on the committee’s website.
In a statement at a committee hearing, Comer said Ellison and Walz “presided over one of the most extensive breakdowns of oversight this Committee has ever examined. Billions of taxpayer dollars were stolen from social services programs while warnings piled up, whistleblowers spoke out, and state officials chose delay and denial over action.”
He said the loss of $9 billion in fraud “happened because state leadership failed, repeatedly, to intervene. Governor Walz has claimed his administration addressed fraud ‘very early,’ but that claim does not hold up to the facts — his administration kept payments flowing.”
“In case after case, state agencies identified red flags and received warnings from auditors and employees, but continued to send money out the door. Not because they lacked authority to intervene, but because they feared lawsuits, bad press, and political backlash.
Comey noted that investigating the fraud has shown Democrats are still unwilling to get to the truth.
“Republican staff spent 36 hours and 46 minutes in nine transcribed interviews with current and former Minnesota state officials. Democrats, however, only asked 3 hours and 14 minutes worth of questions. That is inexcusable and frankly embarrassing. Taxpayers deserve better,” he said.
You can’t make this up. 🤦🏻♂️
Democrat: “Mr. Chairman, it’s outrageous that this is what we’re choosing to spend our time on in the Oversight Committee.”@RepJamesComer: “Fraud?”
Democrat: ” … Yes, fraud.” pic.twitter.com/ifnZBTv19J
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) March 4, 2026
The interim report’s findings included documentation that Walz and Ellison “were aware of credible fraud concerns as early as 2019 at the Minnesota Department of Human Services and by April 2020 at the Minnesota Department of Education.”
Agency officials who funded programs even amid fears of fraud were more worried about “litigation threats and concerns about being perceived as racist rather than any actual legal barrier,” the report said.
The report said state officials were never forced to keep throwing money out the door, despite claims to the contrary.
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