Congressman Michael Baumgartner (WA-05) has called for a federal review of Washington state’s administration of benefit programs, following revelations of widespread fraud in similar programs in Minnesota. In a letter addressed to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Baumgartner requested an integrity review of federally funded benefits managed by the state.
“Washington families deserve to know their tax dollars are paying for real meals and real care, not padding the pockets of scammers,” said Congressman Baumgartner. “Minnesota is a cautionary tale for every state: when state authorities fast track welfare payments with weak front‑end controls and lax enforcement, fraudsters will pounce. My goal is simple: get independent confirmation that Washington’s safeguards are working, and if they are not, fix the problems now rather than after a headline‑grabbing scandal.”
In his letter, Baumgartner highlighted concerns about systemic risks present when large federal funding streams are distributed at the state level through third-party entities. He wrote: “Recent developments in Minnesota highlight a recurring risk profile that is not unique to one state or one program: when large federal funding streams are administered at the state level through extensive networks of third-party providers, sponsors, subrecipients, or contractors—especially where enrollment is easy, documentation is limited, and payments are made before meaningful verification—fraud risks can scale quickly.”
Baumgartner has asked the Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture to examine whether Washington’s welfare programs share vulnerabilities that have led to major fraud cases elsewhere. He requested validation that current safeguards are effective or identification of any issues needing correction.
Specifically, Baumgartner called for reviews covering USDA child nutrition programs administered in Washington—including sponsors and sites—as well as other relevant USDA nutrition benefits managed by the state. For HHS programs, he asked for reviews of Medicaid-funded services and waiver programs (CMS), child care subsidy-related federal funding streams (ACF), and other HHS-administered initiatives relying on provider networks or subcontracted service delivery.
The full text of Congressman Baumgartner’s letter is available online.