(CNN) — The Trump administration is freezing $10 billion in funds for social services and child care in five Democratic-led states, according to a Department of Health and Human Services official, with the agency suggesting without evidence that the funding has been used fraudulently.
The freeze will impact California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, according to news reports confirmed by HHS.
HHS will cut off more than $7 billion in funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which provides cash assistance to households, along with more than $2 billion for the Child Care and Development Fund. The department will also hold around $870 million from the Social Services Block Grant.
Asked about the reports at a news conference Tuesday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said, “This is a fight we’re going to have to take on if we get that notification. We’ll fight this with every fiber of our being because our kids should not be political pawns in a fight that Donald Trump seems to have with blue-state governors.”
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, condemned the funding freeze and accused the administration of political retribution.
“To use the power of the government to harm the neediest Americans is immoral and indefensible,” Gillibrand said in a statement. “This has nothing to do with fraud and everything to do with political retribution that punishes poor children in need of assistance.”
The news comes just days after the Trump administration paused federal funding of child care programs in Minnesota amid a deepening federal probe into allegations of fraud involving social services.
“For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told CNN. “Under the Trump Administration, we are ensuring that federal taxpayer dollars are being used for legitimate purposes. We will ensure these states are following the law and protecting hard-earned taxpayer money.”
CNN has reached out to the Office of Management and Budget and all five states’ departments of health and gubernatorial offices for more information about the cuts.
The Colorado Department of Human Services told CNN the agency has not received a notification from the administration about the freeze.
“Should these funding sources change, we remain committed to supporting our families in Colorado and will continue to advocate for the programs and services that help them thrive,” the department said.
The Illinois Department of Human Services similarly told CNN it has not been notified of the funding changes.
“This is yet another politically-motivated action by the Trump Administration that confuses families and leaves states with more questions than answers,” the department added in a statement to CNN.
The allegations of fraud in Minnesota were made in a YouTube video by 23-year-old content creator Nick Shirley, who claimed, with little evidence, that Somali-run child care centers in the state were fraudulently taking funding meant to provide child care for low-income families.
In the wake of the viral video, the Trump administration froze federal funding for child care in the state and said it was deploying 2,000 federal agents as part of an immigration crackdown. Federal and state investigations into alleged wrongdoing are ongoing.
There has been no evidence provided by law enforcement to suggest that Minnesota or the other four Democratic states have suffered widespread fraud in the use of federal child care and social services funds.
The-CNN-Wire
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