Some Minnesota childcare centers now required to submit electronic attendance records

Licensed childcare centers in Minnesota that receive payment from the Child Care Assistance Program are now required to submit electronic attendance records, state officials said on Friday.

The move comes after previous federal and state investigations into suspected fraud in the state.

According to the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families, the requirement started on Monday and will eventually expand to include all childcare providers receiving payment from the program.

The state agency says it's worked with information technology vendors and providers over the last six months to develop the approach.

Providers will use "a range of attendance-tracking tools and methods" to complete the requirement, officials said.

"Keeping data safe and confidential is a top priority," the agency said in a news release. "DCYF and its partners work hard to keep the private information shared with the government safe and secure by preventing unauthorized access."

Anyone who doesn't comply with the mandate could face extra payments or other consequences, including losing eligibility for the program, officials said. 

The program pays childcare providers to care for children from families with low incomes, officials said. 

In April, federal agents executed search warrants at about 20 childcare centers in Minneapolis for suspected fraud. No one was arrested in the raids.

Last December, CBS News detailed how a group of convicted fraudsters allegedly spent some of the millions of taxpayer dollars stolen by people associated with a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future, which was meant to help feed vulnerable children during the pandemic. 

At least two women who pleaded guilty in the $250 million scheme submitted false attendance records in order to receive payments from the Federal Child Nutrition Program, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota.