• Child care subsidy programs have faced increased scrutiny following claims of widespread program fraud from the Trump administration.
• A Republican state lawmaker called for a program evaluation that the auditor general recently decided to add to its docket in 2026.

Michigan’s auditor general plans to review the state’s child care subsidy program, and among the factors for the decision is a request for an audit from State Senate Republican Leader Aric Nesbitt. 

Nesbitt, who is running for governor, called for an audit of the program after Trump administration claims of widespread child care subsidy fraud in Minnesota and across the nation.  

Nesbitt’s request is one of several factors that led the auditor general to put the program on its 2026 docket, which includes around 30 other programs. Other factors that inform this kind of decision include whether there’s available staff to carry out the audit, the program’s audit history and general public interest in the program, said Kelly Miller, Office of the Auditor General spokesperson, in an email.

The specifics of what the audit will cover are not yet known, since auditors have to first identify areas of concern or improvement before figuring out what the scope of the evaluation will look like, Miller wrote.

The auditor general carries out annual financial audits on each major state subsidy program using federal dollars, but given its limited time and resource, the office must be selective in which programs receive performance audits.

Financial audits make sure a program is complying with federal requirements tied to federal dollars, performance audits put a magnifying glass to some specific program element, often related to policies and procedures. Past Michigan child care subsidy performance audits have identified problems including a lack of systems to track the accuracy of payments to child care providers and insufficient background vetting of licensed providers. 

The last performance audit of Michigan’s child care subsidy system came out in November 2025, though it didn’t focus on evaluating how well the program manages fraud and improper payments. Instead, it focused on an issue that continues to come up consistently for providers and families utilizing the program: poor communication practices by the state’s early childhood agency, MiLEAP, which administers the program, that leave child care providers and parents stranded when payments are late or kids can’t get turned onto the subsidy.

MiLEAP did not respond to requests for comment but department spokesperson Aundreana Jones-Poole said in a statement earlier this month that “MiLEAP has a zero-tolerance policy for fraud or abuse of funds meant to benefit Michigan families.”

Sen. Nesbitt, R-Porter Township, said in a press release that he welcomed the audit, calling it “good news for legitimate, law-abiding child care providers and the many families who struggle to find affordable childcare throughout our state. It’s time to root out waste, fraud and abuse and hold our state agencies accountable for everyone who is fighting to make it in Michigan.”

Auditor general investigations are two of several state oversight measures intended to track a program’s integrity and curb potential program fraud: MiLEAP randomly audits licensed providers across Michigan to check time and attendance records and make sure billing is accurate and the Inspector General for the Michigan Department for Health and Human Services carries out fraud investigations each year.

The federal government’s Office of Child Care also audits every state’s subsidy program. States are grouped in cohorts that are evaluated in 3-year cycles. Michigan’s next federal audit is also coming up in March 2026, according to the Early Childhood Investment Corporation, a Michigan-based early childhood nonprofit. Federal audits look at how programs tackle fraud and address subsidy payment errors.

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

Top official vows shift in operations after killings of US citizens, but says Trump not ‘surrendering’ mission.

Tom Homan, United State President Donald Trump’s Border Czar, has vowed a shift in immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota, but maintained that Trump was not “surrendering” his mission.

Speaking during a news conference from the Midwestern state, where he was sent in the wake of two killings of US citizens by immigration enforcement officers this month, Homan vowed a lasting presence and more refined enforcement operations.

Still, he largely placed the blame of recent escalations on the administration offormer US President Joe Biden and the policies of local officials, saying that more cooperation would lead to less outrage.

“I’m staying until the problem’s gone,” Homan told reporters on Thursday, adding the Trump administration had promised and will continue to target individuals that constitute “public safety threats and national security threats”.

“We will conduct targeted enforcement operations. Targeted what we’ve done for decades,” Homan said. “When we hit the streets, we know exactly who we’re looking for.”

While Homan portrayed the approach as business as usual, immigration observers have said the administration has increasingly used dragnet strategies in an effort to meet sky-high detention quotas.

State and local law enforcement officials last week even detailed many of their off-duty officers had been randomly stopped and asked for their papers. They noted that all those stopped were people of colour.

On the campaign trail, Trump had vowed to target only “criminals”, but shortly after taking office, White House spokesperson said it considered anyone in the country without documentation to have committed a crime.

Homan vowed to continue meeting with local and state officials, hailing early “progress” even as differences remain. He highlighted a meeting with the State Attorney General Keith Ellison in which he “clarified for me that county jails may notify ICE of the release dates of criminal public safety risk so ICE can take custody”.

It remained unclear if the announcement represented a policy change. Minnesota has no explicit state laws preventing authorities from cooperating with ICE and the states prisons have a long track-record of coordinating with immigration officials on individuals convicted of crimes.

County jails typically coordinate based on their own discretion.

Homan was sent by Trump to replace Greg Bovino, the top border patrol official sent to the state as part of a massive enforcement operation that has sparked widespread protests.

On January 7, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. Last week, border patrol agents fatally shot Alex Pretti.

KSHB 41 reporter Marlon Martinez covers Platte and Clay counties in Missouri. Marlon has been following this story for months. Share your story idea with Marlon.

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A Northland viewer’s question about school bus safety laws has prompted clarification from the Missouri State Highway Patrol about when drivers must stop for school buses at intersections.

Missouri Highway Patrol helps answer viewer question on Missouri’s stop-arm law

Claudia reached out asking about Missouri law regarding stopping for school buses on divided streets and highways, specifically on 96th Street between North Oak and Highway 169. I took her question to the Missouri State Highway Patrol for answers.

The intersection at 96th Street and North Oak Trafficway creates common confusion for drivers due to its wide, busy design with a median-divided roadway and traffic light control.

“This is a much different intersection, because it is light controlled. Obviously, that’s a median divided roadway, so she’s still able to go straight even in that, in that or those drivers are able to go straight even in that situation,” Corporal Justin Howard with the Missouri Highway Patrol said.

On four-lane roads with medians, drivers on the opposite side of the road do not need to stop when a school bus stops with its stop arm extended.

However, at four-way intersections, the rules change. Drivers behind the bus must stop, and drivers traveling towards or turning in the direction of the bus must also stop, while others can proceed with caution depending on their position relative to the bus and signal light.

Although that changes if there is a four-way intersection with a median. Cars behind the bus must stop. All other drivers must proceed with caution.

“If a school bus is stopped, stop arm is out, red lights are illuminated. All lanes of the roadway are to stop,” Howard said.

When drivers are uncertain about the rules, Highway Patrol offers simple advice: slow down and be cautious.

“No meeting, no event is worth, you know, not paying attention to these types of violations, that the precious cargo that’s being transported on these school buses is extremely important, not only to the families, the schools, the community,” Howard said.

Kansas has similar stop-arm laws to Missouri’s regulations.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says they will continue enforcing stop-arm violations as they encounter them.
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