ST. PAUL. Min. – Hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans may not have been eligible for a “hero reward” from the state government, according to a new report from the Office of the Legislative Auditor.
“We concluded that the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), the agency charged with overseeing and implementing the Minnesota Frontline Worker Pay Program, was not meeting the program’s requirements,” the report concluded , which was published on Tuesday. “The Legislature must consider the amount of risk the state is willing to accept in quickly establishing programs and eligibility requirements that rely on self-attestation.”
About a million frontline workers receiving a $487.45 payout for weathering the pandemic; state officials had said about 15% of applications were denied. The state’s initial estimate was that 667,000 people would qualify for hero pay, meaning they would get $750 per person.
According to the audit, 40% of those receiving wages did not have their eligibility confirmed.
“There were some controls on state systems, such as unemployment claims and adjusted gross income, that the Treasury Department has,” Legislative Auditor Judy Randall told WCCO News. “But for some of these other things, it was the honor system.”
The Frontline Worker Pay Program was the culmination of two years of debate as lawmakers grappled with eligibility requirements and how much taxpayer money to allocate.
GOP and DFL lawmakers quickly responded to their stories on Tuesday.
“People in Minnesota should be outraged at Democrats and their disrespect for our hard-earned dollars,” said Sen. Karin Housley, R-Stillwater. “The program initially expected more than $1,000 for frontline workers who took enormous risks during the pandemic. However, based on so many applicants, and apparently many fraudulent applicants, that check was $487.”
Rep. Cedrick Frazier, a Democrat from New Hope, countered that DFL lawmakers were the only reason frontline workers got a payout in the first place.
“We should not ignore the success of this program,” he told WCCO News. “We created this program to provide resources to workers on the front lines putting their lives on the line for Minnesotans – and that’s exactly what we did.”
Jonas Kaplan
