Stop Fraud by SOMALIA Act
Sponsored By: Senator Cornyn, John [R-TX]
Introduced
Summary
Permanent debarment for child-care fraud is the bill’s central change. It would turn certain findings of fraud under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act into a new, mandatory ground for federal debarment and attach strong enforcement and immigration penalties to those findings.
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- Families: Families would see federally funded and state-administered child-care providers found to have committed fraud barred from receiving federal child-care assistance, and states would be required to deny funding to those debarred providers.
- Child-care providers and states: Providers who knowingly submit false statements, misrepresent eligibility, operate without required licensing, or misuse funds would face mandatory permanent debarment with no reinstatement by renaming or reorganizing. The Secretary could require repayment, recoup funds, or deduct up to the fraud amount from a state’s administrative allotment, and the bill preserves exemptions to speed implementation.
- Immigrant providers and enforcement agencies: Noncitizen providers permanently debarred for fraud would be made inadmissible and deportable, barred from asylum and adjustment of status, excluded from good moral character findings, and subject to mandatory detention and expedited removal; debarments based on administrative orders would be referred for possible federal criminal investigation.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 3 costs, 1 mixed.
Permanent ban for child care fraud
If enacted, a child care provider with a "final determination of fraud" would be permanently banned from any federal child care assistance program funded by HHS. The Secretary would require repayment or recoupment of fraudulently obtained funds and could force a State to reimburse or lose up to that amount from its next administrative allotment. States would have to deny participation and funding to any debarred provider. The Secretary would also refer administrative-order-based fraud findings to the Attorney General for possible criminal investigation.
Immigration penalties for banned providers
If enacted, an immigrant permanently debarred for child care fraud would become inadmissible and deportable. They would be ineligible for asylum, adjustment of status, and good moral character determinations tied to those benefits. The bill would allow expedited removal and add mandatory detention triggers for certain convicted or inadmissible providers. It also creates a terrorism-related bar if funds were found to support a designated terrorist group.
Retroactive fraud rules to 1996
If enacted, the bill would apply sections 3–6 to fraud conduct committed on or after September 30, 1996, when the person was not arrested, charged, or indicted before enactment. That would let immigration and enforcement consequences attach to qualifying historical fraud by aliens who have not previously been charged.
Faster agency implementation rules
If enacted, the HHS Secretary, the Homeland Security Secretary, and the Attorney General could skip normal Administrative Procedure Act rulemaking and Paperwork Reduction Act review when putting sections 3–6 into effect. Each official would have to determine that those procedural steps would impede immediate implementation. This would speed enforcement but would reduce public notice, comment, and paperwork review for those parts of the law.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Cornyn, John [R-TX]
TX • R
Cosponsors
Sen. Kennedy, John [R-LA]
LA • R
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Sen. Scott, Rick [R-FL]
FL • R
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Sen. Tuberville, Tommy [R-AL]
AL • R
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Sen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN]
TN • R
Sponsored 1/14/2026
Sen. Moody, Ashley [R-FL]
FL • R
Sponsored 1/15/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov