By Trevor Hunnicutt
WASHINGTON, Oct 20 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would reward tipsters who uncover fraud in US government programs, launching the initiative by announcing a cash prize for a conservative online influencer.
Speaking from the White House Oval Office, Trump said a new Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program would award people an unlimited 1% commission on the fraud reported.
The Justice Department described the program differently, saying it would award $10,000
to $30,000 for tips that lead to criminal charges. It said the Treasury Department is committing $25 million toward the program and that the Justice Department would issue the awards in its "sole discretion."
The first recipient was Nick Shirley. Senior administration officials have amplified and credited the 24-year-old pro-Trump YouTuber's viral video alleging some childcare centers in Minnesota were fraudulent as the basis for plans to cut some federal funding to the state.
The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families disputed some of those claims as misleading and exaggerated. But one Minneapolis woman whose childcare center Shirley profiled later pleaded guilty to fraud charges.
"There's never been an incentive for anyone to ever expose fraud," Shirley said at the White House. "When you expose fraud, you help save America."
Vice President JD Vance, who leads the president's anti-fraud task force, said Shirley had "done more than anybody that I've met recently as a citizen journalist to uncover the fraud" and that "Nick is going to get a financial reward for doing so."
A White House official told media outlets that Shirley would get $10,000.
It was not immediately clear how Shirley was selected for the prize. The White House, Justice Department and Treasury Department did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment, and Shirley could not immediately be reached.
"I will be the arbitrator of all of these decisions," Trump said about who would be paid under the program. "I will be very generous, believe me. We're not looking to save on that."
The Republican US president has made allegations of fraud in Democratic-led states a focus of his term in office and has pledged to clean up corruption. He has focused especially on Somali immigrants in Minnesota, whom he has called "garbage."
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Additional reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Sanjeev Miglani)
