Small: Time to target government fraud

Time to target government fraud

By Jonathan Small

The state of Minnesota has recently made national news for an astounding level of fraud. When YouTuber Nick Shirley visited numerous daycare centers receiving an estimated $110 million in taxpayer subsidies, he found most appeared to serve no children. The resulting outcry led Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to abruptly announce he was abandoning a re-election bid. Federal officials are now investigating.

Similarly, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York recently filed charges against a long list of defendants accused of perpetrating one of the largest food-stamp fraud schemes in history, totaling more than $66 million in alleged illegal transactions.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently estimated as much as 10 percent of the federal budget, around $300 billion to $600 billion per year, is stolen by fraudsters.

OCPA urges fraud review of state SNAP benefits

OCPA urges fraud review of state SNAP benefits

OKLAHOMA CITY (November 4, 2025)—Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs President Jonathan Small today called on state officials to conduct a thorough review of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Oklahoma, noting that public data suggests a significant amount of fraud may be present.

“The share of Oklahomans on food stamps is nearly 50 percent higher than the share of people in poverty in Oklahoma,” Small said. “In other states, food-stamp participation is generally in line with the poverty rate. That suggests there may be a significant number of people in Oklahoma receiving benefits who do not qualify. It is important that state policymakers not put any state funds into the SNAP program right now; rather, officials must review the program to determine why Oklahoma’s rates are so out of line with national norms. Then they must take steps to implement work requirements, minimize SNAP costs and errors, prohibit illegal aliens from receiving SNAP subsidies, and take whatever additional steps are necessary to protect taxpayers.”

Oklahoma congressional delegation comments on SNAP funding, Be A Neighbor program

Oklahoma Delegation Statement Regarding SNAP Funding and Be a Neighbor Support Services 

Oklahoma (Oct. 30th) – On Saturday, November 1st, 2025, approximately 700,000 Oklahomans will not receive their SNAP benefits. Despite falling into the category of mandatory funding, due to the government shutdown, SNAP contingency funds are not legally available to cover SNAP costs.

We understand that this abrupt pause to SNAP funding may impact many of our constituents, and we wish to assist you during this time. To this end, we recommend that anyone struggling with food scarcity utilize the Oklahoma Human Services’ Be a Neighbor program. Be a Neighbor was started by Governor Stitt in 2018 to help Oklahomans with their food, clothing, and housing needs by providing a comprehensive database of local organizations equipped to support families. 

Congressman Brecheen introduces two bills to protect taxpayers, ag producers

I'm a bit behind on posting these, but Oklahoma's 2nd District Congressman Josh Brecheen recently filed two pieces of legislation, the Stop Government Overreach in Ranching Act and the Healthy SNAP Act.

The Stop Government Overreach in Ranching Act would reverse FDA guidance, “GFI 263,” which restricts the use of commonly used livestock antibiotics, such as penicillin. This has put added expense and hardship upon the those involved in agriculture and livestock. The Healthy SNAP Act would exclude soft drinks, candy, ice cream, and prepared desserts from being purchased with SNAP benefits (informally known as food stamps). 

Read below for more details on both:

Hern applauds new food stamp work-requirement rule for able-bodied adults without dependents

Hern applauds new USDA rule strengthening requirements for SNAP recipients

WASHINGTON, DC – This morning, the United States Department of Agriculture published a final rule entitled “Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program (SNAP): Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults without Dependents.”

In February, Rep. Kevin Hern (OK-01) sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue in support of this proposed rule with the support of 64 Members of Congress.

“I’ve been a strong supporter of this new rule since the moment they announced it,” said Rep. Hern. “There is nothing quite as empowering as a job. No federal program has the power to pull a person out of poverty, no government handout can help a person find independence and success. Only through gainful employment can a person find true stability. We should be encouraging our people to work, contribute to the economy, and put themselves on the path to independence rather than chaining them to the crutch of social programs. Programs like SNAP were never meant to be a long-term solution, but merely a temporary assistance. This ruling will help the American people rise up from poverty and find a better life for themselves. I applaud Secretary Perdue’s commitment to reforming this program!”

Background Information:

The rule promotes work for able-bodied adults (ABAWDs) between the age of 18-49 without dependents and does not apply to children and their parents, those over 50 years old, those with a disability, or pregnant women. The Food and Nutrition Act limits the amount of time ABAWDs can receive SNAP benefits to three months over a 36-month period, unless recipients work or participate in an employment workfare program for minimum hours.  The law allows states to apply for waivers of this time limit due to economic conditions. The waivers resulted in 3.8 million ABAWDs on SNAP in 2016, 2.8 million of which were not working at all. The final rule adjusts the criteria for when and where state may waive these limits.  Under USDA’s rule, states retain flexibility to waive the time-limit in areas of high unemployment and to exempt a percentage of their ABAWD caseload.

You can find more information on these changes here.