On January 8, 2026, the President unveiled a new DOJ division focused on national fraud enforcement. The newly-minted National Fraud Enforcement Division (the Fraud Division) will serve to enforce federal criminal and civil laws prohibiting fraud that targets federal government programs, federally funded benefits, businesses, nonprofits, and private citizens nationwide. This announcement follows the Administration’s stated priority to combat fraud on the government and ongoing federal investigations into certain state-administered health and welfare programs. On April 1, Colin McDonald was sworn in as the Assistant Attorney General (AAG) for the Fraud Division. AAG McDonald is tasked with (i) overseeing multi-district and multi-agency fraud investigations; (ii) providing advice, assistance, and direction to the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices on fraud-related issues; and (iii) working closely with other federal agencies and DOJ divisions to identify, disrupt, and dismantle organized and sophisticated fraud schemes across jurisdictions.

On April 7, 2026, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche released a memo detailing plans to consolidate and realign resources to staff the newly formed Fraud Division. The memo instructs DOJ Criminal Division’s Tax Section, the Health Care Fraud Unit, and the Market, Government, and Consumer Fraud Unit be transferred under AAG McDonald’s operational control effective immediately for an interim period of up to 30 days, at which point a permanent decision on the realignment will be made by the Deputy Attorney General. The memo further directs (1) the Civil Division to designate a Fraud Division liaison to leverage fraud enforcement; (2) each U.S. Attorney’s Office to designate an experienced prosecutor to carry out the Fraud Division’s mission in each district; and (3) the Fraud Division to establish a National Fraud Detection Center, aimed at identifying potential fraudulent schemes for prosecutors.

Separately, on February 23, 2026, Cody Matthew Herche, the head of the Trade Fraud Task Force created in 2025, provided an update on the Task Force’s partnerships and objectives. Herche announced that the Task Force is ramping up efforts to combat abuse by partnering with multiple agencies responsible for product safety and national security, including the FDA, EPA, CPSC, HSI, DHS, and DOJ. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago will serve as a lead prosecutorial partner on the Task Force. Herche also stated that investigations are proceeding at a faster pace and the size of settlements have increased precipitously. Herche’s comments signal an aggressive shift in the government’s approach to trade fraud enforcement. Pointing to economic and national security, Herche noted that the Task Force aims to move trade compliance away from administrative decisions and into increased criminal investigations and prosecutions, focused more on individual accountability.