SPOKANE, Wash. — Eastern Washington Representative Michael Baumgartner is calling on the federal government to investigate Washington state programs but stopped short of alleging specific wrongdoing.
Rep. Baumgartner sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture, asking the agencies to review federally-funded programs in Washington to look for fraud akin to allegations in Minnesota.
In his letter to DHS and USDA, Baumgartner says he’s not alleging misconduct in Washington but wants assurances federal funding in the state is protected from fraud.
Baumgartner said on X, “We need to make sure that Washington taxpayers are protected from the type of fraud plaguing federally funded social programs in Minnesota.”
The executive director of Washington State Association of Head Start and ECEAP Joel Ryan told 4 News Now Washington is prepared to provide detailed spending reports if the Trump administration requests them.
Ryan assured 4 News Now the state has strong fraud detection systems saying, “”When families enroll in childcare, childcare provider, if they have a subsidy, they have to sign in electronically every day they come in. We have a very, terrific fraud detection system in our state, a lot of checks and balances.”
Baumgartner’s full letter can be seen below.
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