State Senate GOP leader blasts education department for 'derelictions of duty' that led to massive fraud

The Minnesota Department of Education "greatly magnified" the amount of alleged fraud that took place at Feeding Our Future and its subcontractors through "inexplicable shortcomings and derelictions of duty," according to a new report by Senate Education Committee Chairman Roger Chamberlain, R-Lino Lakes.

The report, issued Monday, concluded that leaders of the education department [MDE] "either did not know how to responsibly manage" the federally funded meals program or "found the faithful execution of those duties burdensome and optional."

MDE officials declined an interview request, but spokesman Kevin Burns defended the department's oversight of the meals program, noting MDE reported its fraud suspicions to the FBI and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the $200 billion meals program.

https://www.startribune.com/state-panels-blasts-mde-for-derelictions-of-duty-that-led-to-massive-fraud/600206171/