A widening investigation by the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee into alleged Medicaid fraud has placed new scrutiny on the background and political career of Deqa Dhalac, a Democratic lawmaker from South Portland whose prior leadership role at a Maine nonprofit has become a focal point of state and federal review and an issue in Maine’s broader political debate over public spending and oversight.
The inquiry is being led by Congressman James Comer, the Kentucky Republican who chairs the House Oversight Committee. It centers on Gateway Community Services, a Portland-based organization that has received tens of millions of dollars through MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid program.
Maine officials say audits conducted by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services identified significant overbilling by Gateway, prompting the state to suspend payments and refer the matter for further review. Federal lawmakers have since sought additional financial records as part of a broader examination of Medicaid billing practices nationwide.
As part of that effort, Comer’s committee has requested Suspicious Activity Reports and related financial records from the U.S. Treasury, seeking information connected to Gateway and individuals associated with the organization, including Dhalac, who previously served as assistant executive director before her election to the Maine House of Representatives.
From refugee to elected office
Dhalac was born in Somalia and came to the United States more than three decades ago after fleeing civil war, according to legislative biographies and public records. She later settled in South Portland, where she worked in social services and immigrant advocacy before entering local politics.
She was elected to the South Portland City Council in 2018 and was selected by fellow councilors as mayor in 2021, drawing national attention as one of the first Somali-American mayors in the United States. In 2022, she won election to the Maine House, where she serves on the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee and has supported legislation related to social services and immigrant integration.
Before entering the Legislature, Dhalac worked at Gateway Community Services, which provides interpretation, case management and related services to immigrant and refugee populations and bills MaineCare for some of that work. Her prior employment at Gateway is documented in legislative biographies and nonprofit tax filings.
Gateway investigation and oversight scrutiny
Gateway came under scrutiny after state audits concluded the organization had overbilled MaineCare by more than $1 million. DHHS suspended payments, a step the agency says is taken when suspected fraud is identified and that can trigger referrals to enforcement authorities.
Gateway has disputed the audit findings. The investigation has since expanded beyond state review, with Comer’s committee describing the Maine case as part of a broader national examination of vulnerabilities in Medicaid and other federally funded social service programs.
Dhalac has not been charged with wrongdoing. She has not issued a detailed public statement addressing the House Oversight Committee’s inquiry, and no criminal allegations against her have been filed by prosecutors.
The Maine Wire attempted to contact Dhalac for comment. Calls placed to the cell phone number listed on her official Maine Legislature webpage indicated the number had been disconnected.
A history of political controversy
Dhalac’s career has included earlier public disputes. In 2016, before holding elected office, she filed a discrimination complaint with the Maine Human Rights Commission after she was not appointed to a municipal committee in South Portland. She alleged the decision was influenced by her religion and national origin, while city officials disputed the claim.
Her elevation to mayor in 2021 brought increased national attention, which amplified scrutiny of her record and policy positions after she entered the Legislature the following year.
Bobby Charles’ gubernatorial campaign
The Gateway investigation entered the 2025 gubernatorial campaign through comments and campaign messaging by Bobby Charles, a Republican candidate and former federal prosecutor.
Charles has publicly criticized Dhalac over her prior leadership role at Gateway and called for her resignation, arguing that the scale of the alleged MaineCare over-billing raised serious questions about accountability and oversight. He has framed the issue as part of a broader critique of how Maine administers taxpayer-funded social service programs, particularly MaineCare.
He has also cited Dhalac as an example of Maine politicians putting allegedly putting their allegiance to their native country of Somalia over their responsibilities to Maine and the U.S., calling her a “Somalia first Democrat.”
Charles has said his criticism is focused on fiscal responsibility and government oversight, not on Dhalac’s personal background. He has characterized the Gateway case as evidence of systemic weaknesses in Medicaid oversight that require investigation and reform.
The dispute elevated Dhalac’s profile beyond her legislative district and placed the Gateway audits at the center of campaign-year debates over public spending, government accountability and transparency.
Political implications
The controversy has intensified scrutiny of MaineCare oversight and nonprofit billing practices while underscoring partisan divisions over how such cases should be discussed during an election cycle.
For Comer, the Maine inquiry fits within the Oversight Committee’s broader mandate to examine how federal funds are spent and to identify weaknesses in oversight mechanisms across states and programs.
State and federal inquiries remain ongoing, and additional financial records could be sought as investigators continue examining billing practices and fund flows connected to Gateway Community Services. Officials have emphasized that investigations and audits do not constitute findings of guilt.
For now, the case has placed renewed attention on Dhalac’s past nonprofit role and political career, illustrating how oversight investigations can intersect with campaign politics and debates over government accountability.
