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The staggering fraud and waste in Minnesota alone is a case in point. Federal prosecutors in the State estimate that Medicaid fraud in recent years could total in the billions. Nearly 9 percent of the roughly $866 million spent on food stamps in Minnesota each year is estimated to be spent in error. The non-profit Feeding our Future engineered a scam that stole nearly $250 million intended to feed needy children in Minnesota by opening fake meal sites and submitting fraudulent claims for millions of meals that were never served. One of the defendants in this scam was also charged with submitting false claims to an autism services program that was subject to widespread fraud. Hundreds of millions of dollars in Federal childcare funding to Minnesota were stolen by an organized ring of Somali immigrants and others who used the stolen money to purchase cars, property, and luxury travel, and sent the funds overseas. The Federal Government is investigating allegations that some of the United States taxpayer dollars subject to fraud in Minnesota were even funneled to one of Africa's most heinous terror groups. All of this was ignored or undetected by State officials. There is also strong reason to believe that similar problems exist in other States, including California, Illinois, New York, Maine, and Colorado. In fact, Minnesota and 20 other States filed a lawsuit to block the Federal Government from even conducting a basic review to determine whether their enrollees are in fact eligible for taxpayer-funded benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Such extensive, undetected fraud could only exist in a system that ignores it. Fraud and mismanagement in these programs constitutes theft of the hard-earned tax dollars from Americans paying into these programs, and of the benefits owed to Americans who need them. The failure to ensure sufficient Federal oversight to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse has allowed irresponsible State politicians to increase Federal spending in their own States, which has contributed to inflation for health care services, housing, utilities, and groceries. Making matters worse, the previous administration adopted policies that weakened the Federal Government's oversight of State administration and distribution of Federal funds under these programs, including by reducing commonsense verification measures, expanding access without adequate controls, tolerating unacceptable error rates, creating conditions in which fraud was institutionally tolerated and therefore flourished, and enabling individuals with substantial means to improperly access benefits. My Administration will use all available resources and authorities to fight fraud, close loopholes, enforce eligibility rules, and protect benefits for eligible Americans, while ensuring States administering Federal benefits programs do the same.
Sec. 2. Establishment of the Task Force. (a) There is hereby established within the Executive Office of the President a Task Force to Eliminate Fraud (Task Force). (b) The Vice President of the United States shall serve as the Chairman of the Task Force. The Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission shall serve as Vice Chairman of the Task Force, shall preside over the Task Force at the direction of the Chairman or in his absence, and shall exercise all powers of the Chairman herein defined at his direction or in his absence.
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