Gov. Gavin Newsom is responding after President Donald Trump said Tuesday that California is being investigated for fraud. The president said in a post on Truth Social that the "Fraud Investigation of California has begun," but he did not provide any specifics about the alleged fraud. In a statement to ABC News, Newsom's office said he's blocked more than $125 billion in fraud, arrested criminals and protected taxpayers from scam artists.
The freeze, first reported by the New York Post, will impact California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, according to news reports confirmed by HHS. HHS will cut 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.
New Mexico has become the first state in the country to guarantee universal child care to families residing in the state. New Mexico families will be eligible for free child care for infants and toddlers starting Nov. 1, no matter their incomes. The groundbreaking initiative will require no co-pays from families. The typical New Mexico family is expected to save over $12,000 per child annually with the initiative.
An industry-sponsored bill moving through the Legislature - and already passed by the Assembly - would eliminate the tax increase and lower the rate back to 15% for the next six years. This would reduce by $180 million annually the tax revenue that the state contributes toward law enforcement, child care, services for at-risk youth and environmental cleanup. The losses include about $81 million annually that would have specifically funded additional subsidized child-care slots for about 8,000 children from low-income families.
