H.Res. 1078

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1078 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1078

Of inquiry requesting the President and directing the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services to transmit, respectively, certain documents 
to the House of Representatives relating to the ``Defend the Spend'' 
freeze on child care payments to all States, Tribes, and Territories.

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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

February 25, 2026

Ms. Chu (for herself, Mr. Neal, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Thompson of 
California, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. 
S?nchez, Ms. Sewell, Ms. DelBene, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Boyle of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania, Mr. Schneider, Mr. 
Panetta, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Horsford, Ms. Plaskett, and Mr. Suozzi) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

RESOLUTION

Of inquiry requesting the President and directing the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services to transmit, respectively, certain documents 
to the House of Representatives relating to the ``Defend the Spend'' 
freeze on child care payments to all States, Tribes, and Territories.

Resolved, That the President of the United States is requested, and 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services is directed, to transmit, to 
the extent that such documents are in the possession of the President 
or the Secretary, to the House of Representatives, not later than 14 
days after the date of adoption of this resolution, copies of any 
document, audit trail, record, audio recording, memorandum, call log, 
correspondence (electronic or otherwise), written agreements, report, 
study, contract, staffing assignment, legal analysis, or other 
communication in their possession, or any portion of any document, 
record, audit trail, audio recording, memorandum, call log, contract, 
staffing assignment, legal analysis, correspondence (electronic or 
otherwise), or other communication, that refers or relates to the 
following:
(1) The tweet by Health and Human Services (HHS) Deputy 
Secretary Jim O'Neill on December 30, 2025, freezing all 
Administration for Children and Families (ACF) payments and 
reinstituting ``Defend the Spend'' procedures.
(2) Drawdown of Child Care Entitlement to States (CCES) 
allocations authorized under section 418 of the Social Security 
Act via the Payment Management System (PMS) any time after 
December 30, 2025, by any State, Territory, or Tribal CCES 
grantee.
(3) Payment management system delays and procedure for 
addressing funding delays and complaints after April 15, 2025, 
related to entitlement funding authorized under title IV or 
subtitle A of title XX of the Social Security Act.
(4) HHS, ACF, and Executive Office of the President social 
media posts alleging child care fraud and resulting threats to, 
and harassment of, individual child care providers after 
December 30, 2025.
(5) Warning letters, referrals to the Office of the 
Inspector General, or other disciplinary actions regarding 
alleged funding misuse by any grantee who has received a 
payment funded in whole or in part under title IV of the Social 
Security Act between January 20, 2025, and December 1, 2025.
(6) Communication with grantees regarding the submission of 
additional data in order to draw down funds provided in whole 
or in part under title IV of the Social Security Act and the 
storage, use, and sharing of such data within and outside of 
HHS after April 15, 2025.
(7) Payments to contractors or consultants related to 
``Defend the Spend'' requirements, procedures, or 
implementation which affect funds provided under title IV of 
the Social Security Act.
(8) Legal opinions regarding the designation as 
``proprietary'', nonpublic, or unavailable to congressional 
requesters of such information related to contracting, spending 
of legally authorized funding, referrals to the Office of the 
Inspector General, staffing assignments, or procedures related 
to funding authorized under title IV or subtitle A of title XX 
of the Social Security Act.
(9) Contracts, staffing assignments, and instructions to 
contractors and any HHS staff (whether based in the District of 
Columbia or regionally) regarding the ``Defend the Spend'' 
criteria and process for State, Tribal, or Territorial 
entitlements under subtitle A of title IV of the Social 
Security Act.
(10) Contracts with States, Tribes, and Territories 
governing any payment management system operative in 2025 and 
2026 and used to provide grantee access to entitlement funding 
provided under title IV of the Social Security Act.
(11) Meetings, discussions, or other actions involving the 
HHS Office of the General Counsel or outside legal advisors 
regarding the use of a payment management system by grantees or 
efforts to provide, delay, or prevent access to entitlement 
funding, including such funding authorized under title IV or 
subtitle A of title XX of the Social Security Act, after 
January 20, 2025.
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