ST. PAUL, Minn. — The state Department of Children, Youth and Families issued a list of payments to 10 childcare businesses to which it been accused of making payments for services that were not rendered. The agency said it was investigating the accusations. The accusations originated with a Utah blogger who made slap-dash sweeps of 10 Minneapolis childcare centers in a single-day and found no children. The blogger Nick Shirley claimed he had uncovered fraud. The video gave new ammunition to President Trump’s campaign to savage Minnesota’s Democratic Governor Tim Walz. In the video Shirley claimed that he found not only fraud but also “political corruption.” Shirley offered no evidence of corruption, however. The just-released list from the The state Department of Children, Youth and Families was compiled at the request of 30 Republican state senators who have been looking for evidence of incompetence in the Walz administration. List released by the Department of Children, Youth for shows payments to the 10 childcare centers in the Shirley video in Fiscal 2025. The list:
> Future Leaders Early Learning Center, $3.7 million.
> Minnesota Best Child Care Centers, $3.4 million.
> Learning Centers Quality, $1.9 million
> Minnesota Child Care Center, $2.7 million.
> Mini Child Care Center, $1.5 million.
> Sweet Angel Child Center, $1.5 million.
> Tayo Daycare, $1.1 million.
> ABC Learning Center, $1 million.
> Super Kids Daycare Center, $470,000.
> Mako Child Care center, zero (not operating since 2022).
Of these, the agency said, four centers have been under “active investigation.” Childcare centers are state-licensed for a specified number of children based on a complex formula that considers square footage, staffing, child ages and other criteria. Typical is 20 to 60 children. There are 1,200 childcare centers in Minnesota and 10,000 smaller family-care units, all licensed by the state Department of Children, Youth and Families. The goal is to allow parents to hold jobs outside the home.