The caucus sent a letter Wednesday to Senate Post Audit and Oversight Committee Chair Sen. Mark Montigny requesting a hearing on “significant and recurring evidence of SNAP EBT fraud, operational failures within the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA), and the Commonwealth’s inability to adequately protect taxpayer funds and program beneficiaries.”
“A recent whistleblower report featured in the Boston Herald and based on the comments of a DTA employee details specific instances of internal dysfunction within DTA amplifies the many reasons for concern with these benefits and the way they are being administered. According to the employee, staff observed a substantial increase in SNAP EBT theft beginning around 2021, including cases where newly issued benefits were immediately spent in other states before recipients attempted their first transaction,” the caucus said in its letter, citing the Herald’s recent reporting.
“In that same article, the whistleblower further reports that staff were instructed to “tread lightly” when verifying the identities and addresses of migrant applicants, even when applicants declined to provide a verifiable address. Also described were repeated attempts by staff to raise concerns about fraud patterns that were dismissed or not acted upon,” it said.
The caucus also cited the State Auditor’s Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) identification of over $34 million public benefits fraud in FY23, FY24 and FY25, with SNAP representing the largest share of fraud in each year. BSI also reported that 82.9% of all referrals processed by the office in FY24 involved SNAP, while 78% of referrals processed in FY25 involved SNAP.
The letter went on to add that in FY23, FY24, and FY25, that a significant share of the detected fraud was tied to DTA programs. In FY23, a whopping 69% of identified fraud was tied to DTA programs, totaling $8.49 million. The figure dropped, but was still high in FY24, with DTA programs tied to 59% of identified fraud, good for $6.02 million. In FY25, identified fraud tied to DTA programs dropped again, yet still remained high, making up 49% or $4.95 million.
The caucus also addressed recent SNAP fraud busts uncovered by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including a $7 million scheme ran by two Haitian men and a $1 million scheme ran by a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Dominican Republic, two illegal immigrants, and one green card holder.
“Federal officials have indicated that some of these schemes were not referred by Massachusetts agencies, underscoring gaps in detection and reporting,” the letter reads.
The caucus is asking the committee to examine several aspects of the DTA’s fraud prevention practices and internal management directives, including the agency’s handling of SNAP benefit theft and coordination with federal partners; the impact of the Emergency Assistance / Right to Shelter system on SNAP program integrity; verification procedures for all applicants, including migrants residing in state funded shelters; the implementation status of BSI recommendations and outstanding fraud cases; the Commonwealth’s exposure to federal sanctions or funding reductions; potential statutory or regulatory reforms to strengthen program integrity; and the effectiveness of recently undertaken measures to combat fraud, including chipped EBT cards and the use of PIN numbers.
“These operational concerns intersect with the state’s Emergency Assistance and Right to Shelter system, according to information contained in the newspaper account, which indicates that many new migrants entering the shelter system reported incidents of EBT theft that prevented them from accessing benefits and suggest systematic fraud. Moreover, the report indicates that remedial efforts to address this theft were ineffective, and that stolen benefits were unlikely to be recovered, and could potentially jeopardize federal funding,” said the caucus.
“Taken together — the BSI’s multiyear findings, the whistleblower’s detailed account of internal dysfunction, the federal government’s discovery of large-scale fraud schemes, and the conflicting statements regarding referrals to federal authorities — these developments present a clear pattern of systemic vulnerabilities that warrant immediate legislative oversight,” it said.
The request for an oversight hearing comes as Gov. Maura Healey continues to refuse to provide the Trump Administration and USDA with information on Massachusetts SNAP recipients in order to root out waste, fraud and abuse.
The Massachusetts Republican Party said in a Wednesday press release that it stands with the Republican Caucus.
Sen. Montigny and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Bruce Tarr (R-1st Essex & Middlesex) have not responded to a request for comment by the Herald.
About the Author
Discover more from USA NEWS
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
