Minnesota Department of Human Services in state of total disrepair

In another instance of Tim Walz's administration failing, an audit by Legislative Auditor Judy Randall's team found that the Minnesota Department of Human Services failed Minnesota taxpayers again. That's as shocking as finding out that Elon Musk is rich. Jodi Harpstead, Department of Human Services commissioner, said during a legislative hearing last week "During the very first days of the COVID-19 pandemic, DHS received a sudden influx of state and federal funding to get Minnesotans experiencing homelessness into safe shelter spaces."

Randall sang a different tune to Alpha News, though. She said "COVID was extraordinary but that didn’t mean we should ignore policies or not meet taxpayer expectations. There are other thoughtful ways and reasonable approaches to make sure the money was spent properly."

Ann Neu-Brindley highlighted Ms. Harpstead's incompetence, saying "Waste, fraud, and abuse have plagued DHS programs for years, and once again an audit has found that the Walz administration failed to protect taxpayer dollars. During the pandemic, DHS oversaw hundreds of millions of COVID relief dollars but they did not effectively manage grant distribution or comply with all legal requirements."

Because DHS did not follow policies and procedures, there’s no way to determine if grantees spent money on allowable activities or if fraud occurred, said Lori Leyson, who leads the OLA’s Financial Audit Division, before the Legislative Audit Commission last week.

This is rich:

Harpstead said the department oversees $20 billion a year and "handles it well."

It's obvious that things aren't well-run in Tim Walz's administration. It's another instance where Walz Failed. The MN Department of Human Services has the second-largest budget in Minnesota. When they don't follow procedures, hundreds of millions of dollars can disappear in a hurry.

A little over 7 minutes into this hearing, Lori Leyson lowered the boom on MnDHS:

She said "DHS didn't always comply with requirements". Ms. Leyson also said that there were "significant deficiencies in internal controls." That's another way of saying that DHS isn't equipped to follow the laws. That, in turn, helps fraudsters rip off the system.

Tim Walz hasn't fixed this problem. He installed Harpstead after the previous DHS Commissioner resigned in disgrace. Apparently, Ms. Harpstead isn't an upgrade over the previous commissioner. If DHS doesn't start following the laws, fraud will continue running rampant within the department.