Mississippi spent at least $94 million in welfare money on NFL players, lobbyists, and pro wrestlers instead of its poorest citizens
- Mississippi misspent at least $94 million in federal welfare funds in ways that paid star NFL football players like Brett Favre, lobbyists, and pro wrestlers, according to a searing state audit released Monday.
- Shad White, the auditor, called it "the most egregious misspending my staff have seen in their careers" in a press release.
- At least $1.1 million went to Favre Enterprises for three events that the football player never attended. The player is not accused of wrongdoing in the report.
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The Mississippi state auditor released a searing report Monday that found the state had misspent at least $94 million in federal welfare funds in ways that did virtually nothing to aid its poorest citizens over the course of three years.
The money from the program, known as the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, flowed to the state. The 104-page report said it was later directed to two nonprofit groups that spent the funds on lobbyists, pro wrestlers, and speeches that were never given by Brett Favre, the famed NFL quarterback who lives in Mississipppi.
Shad White, the auditor, called it "the most egregious misspending my staff have seen in their careers" in a press release.
"If there was a way to misspend money, it seems DHS leadership or their grantees thought of it and tried it," White said, referring to the state's Department of Human Services, which is in charge of managing the federal welfare money from TANF.
State officials marked $94 million as "questionable," indicating the federal funds were likely misspent or unable to be verified as used properly.
Some of that spending included $1.1 million that went to Favre Enterprises for three appearances he never attended. Around $3.1 million also went to companies managed by the family of Ted DiBiase, a former wrestler, for services that didn't end up helping the poor or were never completed. Neither are accused of wrongdoing in the report.
There were also at least two instances in which federal funds were used to buy college football game tickets.
The former head of the state agency, John Davis, was arrested in February, according to the Jackson Clarion Ledger. He's accused of a massive embezzling scheme.
TANF was implemented in 1996 to overhaul the federal welfare system, per the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The new block grants gave states more room to decide how federal money should be spent to aid low-income citizens, but critics argue they have excessive leeway and don't have to justify their spending.