Gov. Maura Healey is huge on preventing for Massachusetts residents and following the regulation.
When it fits her agenda.
Proper now Healey is digging in her heels in refusing to adjust to USDA anti-fraud information necessities.
We must always need to expose and finish fraud, particularly because the state Auditor’s Workplace introduced late final week that, for the fiscal yr that ended June 30, its Bureau of Particular Investigations recognized $11,952,288 in public help fraud after conducting 4,179 investigations. That’s $11,952,288 of our tax {dollars}.
As a few of that fraud includes SNAP advantages, the USDA must be a part of the investigation.
“In February of this yr we requested for all the states for the primary time to show over their information to the federal authorities, to let the USDA accomplice with them to root out this fraud to be sure that those that really want meals stamps are getting them, however to additionally make sure the American taxpayer is protected,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins mentioned.
That appears simple sufficient, however the Blue State pace bump is derailing the plan. As a result of the knowledge the USDA FNS (Meals and Diet Service) wants contains recipients’ immigration standing.
Massachusetts virtually invented the “don’t ask, don’t inform” rule to unlawful immigration.
“The Trump Administration has refused to present us assurances that this delicate private information, together with social safety numbers, is not going to be turned over to ICE or abused for different functions. A decide mentioned this information shouldn’t be turned over, and there’s a case occurring proper now. If the Trump Administration agrees they are going to defend folks’s delicate information from locations like ICE, we’ll after all contemplate offering it,” Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand mentioned.
“Locations like ICE.” As in regulation enforcement. That’s what the Immigration and Customs Enforcement is, regardless of the various detractors labelling the company because the Gestapo. ICE is federal regulation enforcement, and it’s implementing immigration regulation.
Healey appeared to get the memo in a March, 2025 interview with the New York Occasions.
“Congress makes the legal guidelines. I’ll not agree with every part Congress does, however that’s a democracy. That’s how our system works. Congress makes the legal guidelines. The judiciary enforces the legal guidelines and determines the appliance of the regulation. And the manager, and I’m an government, my job is to faithfully apply and execute the regulation.”
Congress has “plenary” energy over immigration. It determine
ke Healey to observe it.
President Trump’s administration put some spin on the ball, threatening to withhold funding for SNAP from 21 blue states for refusing to adjust to these anti-fraud information necessities.
“It’s outrageous, it’s merciless, it’s appalling.” mentioned Healey.
And but, the Healey Administration is prepared to withhold funding from cities and city not in compliance with the MBTA Communities ACT.
Already, Tewksbury Public Colleges discovered it received’t obtain sure state funding in fiscal 2026 because of the city’s noncompliance.
In Middleton, the city misplaced a $2 million MassWorks grant that had already been awarded, together with funding for a Council on Growing older passenger van.
Merciless? Appalling? Or simply the implications of not following a regulation Healey helps.
