Minnesota Fraud and Oversight

Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent says the Trump administration’s Education Department blocked about $1 billion in attempted federal student‑aid fraud in 2025 and has imposed stricter ID verification on the FAFSA form to combat so‑called "ghost student" scams. In an interview, Kent singled out California and Minnesota as among the worst hubs for federal student‑aid abuse, citing at least $10 million stolen from California community colleges between 2024 and 2025 and a report that roughly 34% of last year’s California community‑college applications were likely fake. He described a rising wave of fraudulent enrollees who have no intention of attending classes, instead signing up to trigger Pell Grants and other aid, appearing in class once or twice and then disappearing with the funds — a scheme he warns can be scaled with AI and operated from abroad. To respond, the department has introduced mandatory identity checks for first‑time FAFSA applicants, which Kent called an obvious safeguard that prior administrations failed to require, and he framed every diverted aid dollar as money that could otherwise back roughly 1,700 Pell Grants for low‑income students. The crackdown underscores growing concern in Washington that large‑scale aid fraud is siphoning money from legitimate students, even as watchdogs will want to see data proving the new ID controls are effective without locking out eligible applicants.