Lawmakers Ask Health Department to Suspend CAIR Grants Over Alleged Hamas Ties and Misuse
Lawmakers say CAIR-affiliated entities received more than $15 million in federal resettlement funds while facing allegations of Hamas ties and grant misuse
A congressional delegation led by Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) has formally requested that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. immediately suspend and initiate debarment proceedings against the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its affiliates, including CAIR-California, from all federal non-procurement programs. The April 27 letter, signed by 14 House members, alleges that CAIR’s longstanding connections to Hamas combined with documented financial mismanagement of federal grant funds pose a grave national security risk.
The letter stated that more than $15 million in HHS-linked Afghan resettlement funds have been sub-granted to CAIR-affiliated entities through the California Department of Social Services since 2022.
According to the congressional delegation, CAIR-CA is alleged to have misused a significant portion of these funds, particularly through the Afghan Legal Services Project (ALSP22-0002), which received over $7.2 million in Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) funds intended for legal aid to Afghan nationals.
Allegations of Financial Irregularities and Grant Misuse
The letter cites a March 13, 2025 complaint filed by the Intelligent Advocacy Network (IAN) with the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review, which details what it characterizes as egregious misuse of federal funds.
Public records cited in the congressional letter and IAN complaint allegedly show that CAIR-CA redirected $3.6 million to itself and non-independent CAIR chapters, in violation of grant terms. The complaint also alleges limited service delivery, inconsistent entity naming in grant applications, and major discrepancies in CAIR-CA’s IRS filings, including reporting $0 in government grants in 2022 and $127,269 in 2023 despite allegedly receiving more than $7 million.
Congressional Letter Cites Alleged Historical Ties to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood
The letter documents CAIR’s historical connections to designated terrorist organizations. CAIR was formed in the aftermath of a 1993 Philadelphia meeting where U.S. Muslim Brotherhood leaders devised what the letter characterizes as “a secretive Hamas support group in North America.” According to the congressional delegation, at least seven CAIR officials have been arrested, convicted, or detained on terrorism-related charges.
The delegation specifically referenced the 2007 Holy Land Foundation case, the largest terrorism-financing prosecution in U.S. history. In that case, Ghassan Elashi, described in congressional materials as a founding member of CAIR’s Texas chapter, was sentenced to 65 years in prison in connection with the Holy Land Foundation prosecution. CAIR was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator in the case. The letter also notes that in direct talks with U.S. officials this year, Hamas reportedly leveraged Elashi’s possible release as a bargaining chip in negotiations over American hostages taken on October 7, 2023.
Recent Government Designations of Muslim Brotherhood
The congressional letter points to recent formal government actions targeting CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood. On November 18, 2025, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a state proclamation designating the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations under Texas law.
On January 13, 2026, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated the Egyptian and Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood branches as Specially Designated Global Terrorists, while the State Department designated the Lebanese Muslim Brotherhood / al-Jamaa al-Islamiyah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and SDGT.
Additional Legislation for Federal Action
Rep. Roy has separately introduced companion legislation to enforce federal action against CAIR. On April 9, he introduced the Designating Hamas Affiliates in America Act of 2026 to designate CAIR as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist Organization, which would block its assets and prohibit U.S. persons from interacting with the organization. Roy previously introduced the No Tax Exemptions for Terror Act, which would eliminate tax-exempt status for extremist groups with close ties to terrorist organizations.
Meanwhile, the Afghans who worked at great risk with the US in the war in Afghanistan are being treated poorly. They deserved entry to the US, but many remain trapped in Qatar. The Trump Administration is not following through with allowing them to enter the US but threatens to send them back to Afghanistan where the Taliban would kill them or to the Congo. The misuse of the funds for their resettlement by CAIR et al and California's role in this is horrific. Sending a message to my State representative.
Now if the funds were used to resettle these morons to Gaza, I wouldn't have a problem.