Sen. Ashley Moody Unveils Two Federal Bills To Crack Down On Fraud
Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., unveiled two federal anti-fraud bills in the U.S. Senate on June 18, 2026, aimed at cracking down on scams that target childcare programs and Americans age 60 and older.[1]
The first measure, the Stop Child Scams Act, would require states to strengthen program-integrity controls for federal childcare funds.[1] It would force corrective plans when payment error rates top 5% and permanently exclude convicted childcare fraudsters from specified programs.[1] The second bill, the STOP Scams Against Seniors Act, would fund state elder-justice task forces to coordinate with federal and local law enforcement on fraud cases targeting people 60 and older, and require detailed reporting on scam patterns.[1]
President Trump signed an executive order on March 16, 2026, creating a Task Force to Eliminate Fraud chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to coordinate enforcement across federal benefits programs. Moody, who was appointed to the Senate in January 2025, began pushing anti-fraud legislation in March 2026, filing bills such as the Stop Fraud in Medicaid Act and the Punishing Health Care Fraudsters Act to back the administration's effort. The House moved a related Stop Child Care Scams Act, H.R. 7726, in early June 2026, and a STOP Scams Against Seniors Act was introduced in the House in December 2025.
The Child Care and Development Block Grant program now receives more than $8 billion a year. It had an average improper payment rate near 5 percent in recent years, and a 2020 GAO estimate put improper payments at $325 million when funding was lower. Scams targeting Americans age 60 and older caused more than $3.4 billion in reported losses in 2023, with over 101,000 victims and an average loss per victim of $33,915.
The mainstream summary does not address the broader context of organized fraud against federal benefit programs, which has seen a significant increase. A 2025 GAO report highlighted that organized groups accounted for nearly half of pandemic-fraud convictions from March 2020 to December 2024, with many exploiting relaxed eligibility and oversight rules during the COVID-19 pandemic. This structural issue is critical to understanding the scale of the fraud that the proposed legislation aims to combat.[2]
Additionally, while the summary mentions the financial losses due to scams targeting seniors, it does not provide the alarming scale of these scams. In 2023 alone, over $3.4 billion was reported lost by more than 101,000 victims, with an average loss of nearly $34,000 per victim. This data underscores the urgency of Moody's proposed measures, which may be seen as a response to a growing crisis rather than simply legislative action.[3]
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📊 Relevant Data
The Child Care and Development Block Grant program, which funds federal childcare assistance, had appropriations exceeding $8 billion annually and an average improper payment rate of nearly 5 percent in recent years, with a 2020 GAO estimate of $325 million in improper payments when funding was lower.
H. Rept. 119-586 - CHILD CARE PAYMENT INTEGRITY — U.S. Congress
Scams targeting Americans age 60 and older caused over $3.4 billion in reported losses in 2023 according to FBI IC3 data, with more than 101,000 victims and an average loss per victim of $33,915.
Elder Fraud, in Focus — FBI
📌 Key Facts
- On June 18, 2026, Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., introduced two federal anti-fraud bills in the U.S. Senate.
- The Stop Child Scams Act would require states to bolster program-integrity controls for federal childcare funds, trigger corrective plans when payment error rates exceed 5%, and permanently exclude convicted childcare fraudsters from specified programs.
- The STOP Scams Against Seniors Act would fund state elder justice task forces to coordinate with federal and local law enforcement on fraud cases targeting Americans age 60 and older and require detailed reporting on scam patterns.
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