Judy Randall — Identified herself as the Legislative Auditor and thanked the committee for holding the hearing.
Ms. Tyson — Ms. Tyson, the director of special reviews, is introduced as the witness who will present the findings, and the speaker then turns to her to deliver the committee’s key points and asks her to state her name for the record.
Ms. Tyson — Described as the expert being brought in because MDE lacked its own general counsel office until 2022.
Ms. Tyson — Ms. Tyson’s testimony was cited in connection with meal-claim invoice validation, specifically the issue of invoices being submitted for 2,000 children when only 1,000 were substantiated. The discussion clarified that her point referred to the period when meal validation was required for incoming meal claims.
David Dibble — Noted as being online.
David Dibble — Senator David Dibble is recognized to ask a question and raises concerns about new oversight tools and what measures will help prevent similar situations in the future. The response then directly thanks him and addresses his oversight-related concerns.
David Dibble — The speaker calls on Senator Dibble next.
Cal Bahr — Noted as being online; likely a transcription error for a member with a similar name, but the transcript says 'Barr'.
Katherine Tyson — Identified herself as OA's director of special reviews and introduced her team.
Lucas Lockart — Named as part of Tyson's team presenting the findings.
Libby Wallace — Named as part of Tyson's team presenting the findings.
Jamie Long — Described as having inadequate oversight of Feeding Our Future and failing to act on warning signs.
Ann Rest — Noted as having joined the meeting.
Ann Rest — Asked whether the speaker wanted to jump in on the line of questioning.
Ann Rest — The speaker calls on Senator Rest next.
Jason Rarick — Noted as having joined the meeting.
Emma Greenman — Noted as being online.
Emma Greenman — Her earlier questions are referenced as part of the discussion being followed up on.
Emma Greenman — Representative Anderson was referenced as someone whose questions could not be answered because the commissioners were not present; exact Anderson identity is uncertain.
Patti Anderson — Representative Patti Anderson pressed for a clear timeline of the issue, asking when it began, whether it dated back to 2018, and when the department first knew there was suspected fraud. She further questioned whether the department had knowledge of the fraud before the Assistant Commissioner’s July 2021 statement, then indicated she would reserve broader comments for later.
Patti Anderson — Asked about monthly reports, dollar amounts, meal counts, and whether emails between department leadership and staff were reviewed.
Greg Davids — A member addressed the speaker as Mr. Randall and asked whether there was evidence of purposeful intent.
Rich Draheim — Representative Quam questioned the witness about oversight capacity, rank and competency, and whether federal dollars were being tracked with proper documentation and procedures. He then shifted to the Feeding Our Future fraud, asking for the total number of meals funded, the number of paid-for meals that never happened, and a breakdown of those figures. Quam also compared the situation to earlier child care fraud, asking whether agencies had implemented new policies, procedures, and cross-agency communication after that earlier scandal to prevent similar failures.
Rich Draheim — The speaker responds to Representative Quam’s earlier questioning by discussing fraud oversight and the need for independent enforcement, while also expressing disagreement with Auditor Randall regarding the OIG question.
Rich Draheim — ASR rendered 'Senor rest'; likely Senator Rest was being addressed in the exchange.
Gene Dornink — Likely a garbled reference to Senator Gene Dornink or another senator; exact identity is uncertain.
Gene Dornink — Senator Koran is addressed in a brief exchange about funding amounts, first asking for the total dollar amount between programs and then following up on the allocation details, including the amount available for SFSP.
Gene Dornink — Senator Cran presses the witness on the investigation process, asking whether USDA was contacted, whether anyone conducted a basic site visit or drive-through, and why verification steps appear not to have been taken, especially given concerns about the timeline and the use of COVID as an excuse.
Gene Dornink — Addresses the commissioner and asks what will be done to ensure basic oversight happens.
Gene Dornink — The speaker responds directly to Senator Dornink.
Gene Dornink — The speaker addresses Senator Dornink while explaining the department's use of site visits and other tools.
Gene Dornink — The speaker references Senator Dornink's earlier remarks about the fraud.
Gene Dornink — The speaker references Senator Dornink's earlier remarks about the fraud.
Gene Dornink — The speaker references Senator Dornink's earlier remarks about the fraud.
Gene Dornink — The speaker references Senator Dornink's earlier remarks about the fraud.
Gene Dornink — ASR rendered 'Senator Karan'; likely Senator Dornink was intended based on prior context.
Gene Dornink — Senator Karan appears to be a transcription error; the speaker likely meant Senator Karan or another member, but the name is uncertain.
Gene Dornink — Senator Drazkowski was referenced as unavailable because his battery was not fully charged.
Gene Dornink — Senator Drazkowski was again referenced as unavailable due to battery issues.
Gene Dornink — Senator Drazkowski was addressed after his connection issue and then thanked for recovering.
Gene Dornink — Was addressed by name in the discussion about fraud training and requested a list of the 15 individuals responsible for the program and their training circumstances.
Gene Dornink — The speaker indicated the requested information was not what had been described as prohibited.
Gene Dornink — Was again addressed in the request for a list of the 15 individuals and their training circumstances.
Gene Dornink — Requested a list of the 15 individuals responsible for the program, when they received training, and the circumstances around that training.
Gene Dornink — Was addressed as the recipient of the agency's commitment to follow up with legally available information.
Steve Drazkowski — Likely a garbled reference to Representative Steve Drazkowski; exact title in transcript is uncertain.
Steve Drazkowski — Senator Drazkowski participates in a continuous line of questioning about alleged fraud and overpayments in the Department of Education’s program. He presses the witness on whether the department knew there was evidence supporting a lower amount but paid a higher amount, characterizing it as prima facie fraud. He then asks about staff training requirements for overseeing the program and what consequences exist for employees who pay claims despite knowing fraud may be occurring. The exchange continues with follow-up remarks and direct responses addressing him, including an analogy about overbilling, and ends with his question about whether the FBI is conducting criminal investigations involving the MDE.
Andrew Lang — The speaker apologized to Representative Anderson for jumping in and interrupting, referencing Anderson as the person being addressed in that apology.
Auditor Randall — Auditor Randall is mentioned as one of the possible people who could provide the total meals figure, alongside Director Tyson. The discussion remains focused on identifying the correct source for that information.
Director Tyson — Director Tyson is mentioned as a possible source for the total meals count, alongside Auditor Randall, in a continuing discussion about who can provide that figure.