Lawmakers Call for Investigations into Financial Aid Fraud at California Community Colleges

Here are the morning’s top stories on Tuesday, April 29, 2025…

• Millions of dollars meant to help California’s community college students have been stolen by scammers, and now both Republican and Democratic leaders are calling for investigations. But there’s debate over who’s responsible and what solutions will actually help students most.
• The Trump administration is looking to build an immigration detention facility at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California, according to internal government communications obtained by KQED.
• President Donald Trump continued his assault on cities and states with sanctuary immigration policies in a new executive order signed on Monday. The order directed his administration to publish a list of sanctuary jurisdictions within 30 days.

Legislators Seek Investigations into Financial Aid Fraud at California Community Colleges

For years, scammers have targeted community colleges across California, posing as students in order to steal money from scholarships or government financial aid. Recent state reports suggest the problem is getting worse, and college leaders say they’re worried that the Trump administration’s cuts to the U.S. Department of Education could hamper fraud prevention and investigations.

Nine Republican U.S. representatives are calling on U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate. State Assemblymember Blanca Rubio, a West Covina Democrat, recently asked the state to conduct its own audit on the matter.

While students, faculty and community college administrators in California agree that it’s a serious and growing problem, they question whether an investigation or an audit will lead to a better solution.

Trump Administration Considers Immigration Detention on Bay Area Military Base, Records Show

Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California, is one of several military sites being considered for a new immigration facility, according to internal government communications obtained by KQED.

The proposed installation is part of an aggressive effort to expand immigration detention nationally, and specifically to use property owned by the U.S. Department of Defense in service of President Donald Trump’s stated goal of deporting 1 million people in his first year in office.

A spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond directly to questions about Travis Air Force Base, but he did affirm that ICE is actively working to expand detention capacity.

“While we cannot confirm individual pre-decisional conversations, we can confirm that ICE is exploring all options in California to meet its current and future detention requirements, which include new detention facilities and possible support from partner agencies,” a written statement from the agency said.

The White House Threatens Sanctuary Cities in a New Executive Order

President Donald Trump signed an executive order that directs the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security to identify and publish a list of jurisdictions where local enforcement has declined to cooperate with the administration’s immigration crackdown.

A lawyer in San Francisco, Cody Harris, who worked on previous sanctuary cases says the point of the list is unclear. “I think a lot of this is politically motivated,” Harris said. “It’s a way to point the finger and hope that some cities or counties will just knuckle under and do what he says.”

Harris added that a list could potentially help sanctuary cities and counties by showing they have a credible fear of losing funds and therefore have standing to sue.

In an earlier executive order, the president tried to strip federal funding from sanctuary cities and counties. But last week, San Francisco and Santa Clara County won an injunction blocking that move.