This is how accountability actually starts. Not with government promises, but with citizens opening the books themselves.

OpenTheBooks is publishing detailed state by state lists of daycare funding recipients to empower everyday Americans to look for fraud where they live. The organization says waiting on government watchdogs is no longer acceptable after years of waste, abuse, and outright theft.

The newly released data shows the top ten state recipients of daycare funds from the Administration for Children and Families between fiscal years 2021 and 2025. Texas tops the list with more than 11 billion dollars. California follows with nearly 10 billion. Florida, New York, Georgia, Ohio, North Carolina, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Michigan round out the rest.

This is not pocket change. This is taxpayer money meant to care for children.

After the massive daycare fraud scandal in Minnesota, where hundreds of millions were siphoned off through fake providers and shell operations, OpenTheBooks says it is clear that Minnesota is likely just the tip of the iceberg. When that much money moves that fast, fraud is not a possibility. It is an expectation.

Instead of waiting for slow moving bureaucracies, OpenTheBooks is calling on citizens to crowdsource accountability. The spreadsheets for each state are now public, allowing Americans to examine recipients, flag red flags, and demand answers from local officials.

From an America First perspective, this matters. Taxpayer dollars are not free money. They are taken from working families who expect them to be used honestly and lawfully. When fraudsters exploit programs meant for children, it is not just theft. It is moral rot.

OpenTheBooks is throwing the doors open and saying the quiet part out loud. You do not need permission to demand transparency. You do not need to wait for Washington. You can start today.

Minnesota showed us what happens when nobody is watching. Now the whole country gets to look.