More than $1.6 million in fraudulent claims have been discovered by the Oklahoma State Department of Education which manages the federal funds paying for child nutritional programs. Those programs became a vital resource for families in Oklahoma experiencing food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister instituted an accountability system in 2016 which caught the claims. Money which was already distributed is being recouped through collections from those who made the fraudulent claims. Legal action could be taken, as well. Hofmeister notes, none of the fraudulent claims came from school districts, but rather the majority of them were from child-care sites.
Hofmeister says Oklahoma is one of the first states to catch fraud within the federal feeding program. She adds despite the attempts to cheat the system, food reached children and families in need.
“We are incredibly grateful for our schools and community partners that stepped up to ensure the nutritional needs of children were met over the last year, as hundreds of schools provided summer meals for the first time. Oklahoma families rely on these services, and we are committed to ensuring integrity for these programs that fuel young learners,” Hofmeister said. “Oklahoma will continue to leverage federal dollars to help our children gain supports to be healthy and successful, and it is our charge to safeguard that valuable investment by taxpayers.”
Participation in the Department of Education’s Summer Food Service Program jumped by more than 700 percent over the past year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture provided increased funding and allowed more flexibility in the program to allow for more feeding sites during the pandemic.
From May to August of 2020, more than 13 million meals were served to children. In 2019, that figure was 1.6 million.
In many of these sites, the school district proudly proclaimed that they would provide food for every child. That “every child” included rich kids as well as poor, which meant that our tax dollars went to providing wealthy kids with free lunches. What a racket!