House Committee Says Tim Walz Is ‘Stonewalling’ Minnesota Welfare Fraud Investigation
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s administration is facing mounting scrutiny after House Republicans accused it of failing to comply with a congressional subpoena tied to one of the largest COVID-era welfare fraud scandals in the country.
In a letter sent Monday by House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg of Michigan, lawmakers allege that Walz’s office has not fully cooperated with a probe into the Feeding Our Future (FOF) scandal — a scheme that defrauded federal child nutrition programs of approximately $300 million.
The letter, obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation, states that the committee subpoenaed documents in September 2024 seeking records related to how the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) oversaw federally funded nutrition programs. Lawmakers are investigating whether the state exercised proper safeguards against fraud, waste, and abuse.
I am incredibly grateful to our U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen and @DMNnews for their dedicated and ongoing work to uncover this fraud and build strong cases against its perpetrators.
Here are a few examples of the cases we have prosecuted with other federal partners like…
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) December 29, 2025
According to Walberg, the administration responded with incomplete materials, omitting text messages between Governor Walz and his staff. The committee is now requesting additional communications, including records related to how the governor’s office handled congressional oversight requests.
“Reporting over the last five to 10 years and the criminal trials of FOF personnel and others continue to raise grave concerns about whether the programs have adequate safeguards in place against fraud, waste, and abuse,” the letter states. It further questions whether Minnesota and MDE provided sufficient oversight of food service sponsors and providers.
The Feeding Our Future case has produced sweeping criminal consequences. Nearly 80 defendants have been charged, with more than 50 convictions secured to date, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi. The nonprofit’s founder, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah — a Somali-born naturalized U.S. citizen — was sentenced to 28 years in prison in August.
The scheme exploited pandemic-era waivers that loosened federal oversight of child nutrition programs, allowing reimbursements for meals allegedly served to children. Prosecutors argued that many of those meals were never distributed, with funds instead diverted for personal enrichment.
The scandal has also intensified political tensions at both the state and federal levels. President Donald Trump has cited the case as justification for tightening immigration policies affecting Somalia and temporarily pausing certain federal health and agriculture funds to Minnesota. Walz has countered that while the state’s welfare programs may attract bad actors, the overwhelming majority of beneficiaries are legitimate. He has accused federal officials of using the scandal to unfairly target Minnesota’s Somali community.
“Those people are going to jail,” Walz said in December, referring to individuals convicted in the scheme. “We’re doing everything we can.”
The governor’s office did not respond to requests for comment regarding the subpoena dispute.
With Walz having announced in January that he will not seek reelection or future public office, the congressional inquiry may continue without him on the ballot. Still, the central question remains: whether Minnesota’s oversight mechanisms failed to detect or prevent one of the largest public assistance fraud cases in recent history — and whether state officials were transparent in addressing it.