Trump administration halting $10 billion in social service funding to 5 Democratic states

Washington — The Trump administration plans to halt billions of dollars in federal funding for social services programs in five states led by Democrats following allegations of fraud, a Department of Health and Human Services official said Tuesday.

The move will freeze $7 billion for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, nearly $2.4 billion for the Child Care Development Fund and roughly $870 million for social services grants that largely benefit children. The states affected are Minnesota, New York, California, Illinois and Colorado.

The New York Times was first to report that HHS would withhold the funding.

“For too long, Democrat-led states and Governors have been complicit in allowing massive amounts of fraud to occur under their watch,” Andrew Nixon, an HHS spokesperson, said in a statement. “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.”

The decision by the Trump administration comes after HHS announced last week that it froze federal child care funding for Minnesota because of “blatant fraud” in public-assistance programs.

This is a developing story and will be updated.