The Michigan House Oversight Subcommittee on State & Local Public Assistance Programs has launched an investigation into 1st Premier Learning Academy & Daycare in Clinton Township, alleging that the facility received over $1.1 million in taxpayer-funded childcare reimbursements despite not operating at its listed address.
The investigation centers on the facility's receipt of $1,121,641 in Child Development & Care (CDC) Program reimbursements between fiscal years 2023 and 2026, as revealed in an investigative report.
Committee staff conducted repeated site visits, finding no evidence that children were being cared for at the advertised location, which is listed as 39781 Garfield Road in Clinton Township.
However, investigators discovered that the address is occupied by Kidz in Motion Early Learning Institute, a daycare whose state license is listed as closed.
Committee staff also attempted to contact the daycare during advertised business hours but were unable to reach anyone, with all calls ending at an answering service.
During a June 12 site visit, committee members found the building locked despite being open during advertised business hours, with lights on inside but no staff or children visible.
A nearby business tenant told investigators they had never seen children at the location, though occasionally seeing construction activity.
Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Jason Woolford conducted his own visit on June 15, finding that no one answered the front door despite repeated knocking.
The report also stated that Woolford found an outdoor play area consisting of a fenced-in asphalt lot with grass growing through the pavement, an old playhouse pushed against the building and chairs stacked outside filled with rainwater.
A rear door was unlocked, but no one responded after Woolford called inside.
Employees at a neighboring café told Woolford they had never seen children enter the facility.
The investigation remains ongoing, with no criminal charges announced.
The oversight committee stated that one of the entities owned by Premier Early Childhood Education Partners LLC, a Chicago-based company that operates several legitimate childcare facilities in Michigan, does business as 1st Premier Learning Academy & Daycare and received approximately $1.12 million in CDC reimbursements between fiscal years 2023 and 2026.
