Status of CARES Act Funding as of June 12, 2020

Summary

Pandemic Response Report 20-074, Status of CARES Act Funding as of June 12, 2020 (Unaudited), issued in June 2020 by the Audit Division of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General. It states DOJ received $1.007 billion in the CARES Act supplemental appropriation, including $850 million for the Office of Justice Programs and $100 million for the Federal Bureau of Prisons. According to DOJ components, as of June 12, 2020 DOJ had obligated over $959 million, or 95 percent, of the funds, with the FBI at 17% of its $20 million. The report lists CARES Act and OMB reporting requirements and the OIG's ongoing work, including remote inspections of BOP facilities and an audit of OJP's oversight of the $850 million.

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D E PA R T M E N T  O F  J U S T I C E  |  O F F I C E  O F  T H E  I N S P E C T O R  G E N E R A L
PANDEMIC RESPONSE REPORT
20-074
JUNE 2020
Status of CARES Act Funding as of
June 12, 2020 (Unaudited)
AUDIT DIVISION

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE | OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL
Status of CARES Act Funding as of
June 12, 2020 (Unaudited)
DOJ’s CARES Act Appropriation
$1.007 billion
•
$850 million for the Office of Justice
programs (OJP)
•
$100 million for the Federal Bureau of
Prisons (BOP)
•
$20 million for the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI)
•
$15 million for the United States Marshals
Service (USMS)
•
$15 million for the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA)
•
$3 million for the United States Attorneys
(USA)
•
$2 million for Justice Information Sharing
Technology (JIST)
•
$2 million for the Office of the Inspector
General (OIG)
Background
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law on
March 27, 2020 by the President of the United
States.  The Department of Justice (DOJ) received
$1.007 billion in the CARES Act supplemental
appropriation to prevent, prepare for, and
respond to coronavirus, domestically or
internationally, including the impact of
coronavirus on the work of the Department of
Justice.
Status
According to DOJ components, as of June 12, 2020,
DOJ has obligated over $959 million, or 95 percent,
of the total appropriated funds received, as shown
below.  An obligation is a legally binding
agreement that will result in an expenditure,
immediately or in the future.
CARES Act
Funding
Net Obligations
Percent
Obligated
(in millions)
OJP
$ 850
$ 841.5
99%
BOP
100
100.0
100%
FBI
20
3.3
17%
USMS
15
3.4
23%
DEA
15
6.5
43%
USA
3
3.0
100%
JIST
2
0.6
32%
OIG
2
1.0
50%
Total
$ 1.007
$ 959.3
95%
Source:  DOJ Components
Examples of How the Money is Being Used
• Grants to states, local governments, and tribes
• Residential Reentry Center expenses
• Information technology services and
equipment to support increased telework
• Free telephone usage for inmates during the
pandemic
• Outside medical expenses for inmates
• Salaries and benefits
• Personal protective equipment and cleaning
supplies
• Safe Haven travel for overseas personnel
•
Food items and paper products used in
Federal prisons

DOJ Requirements Pursuant to
the CARES Act and OMB Guidance
The CARES Act requires the DOJ, along with several other federal departments and
agencies, to satisfy certain reporting requirements related to their allocated CARES Act
funding.  On April 10, 2020, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a
memorandum to these reporting agencies that provided additional direction, including a
mandate that they leverage and continue to employ existing financial transparency and
accountability mechanisms while considering the core principles of mission achievement,
expediency, and transparency and accountability.
CARES Act and OMB Guidance - DOJ Reporting Requirements
Summary of Reporting Requirement
Reference
Due Date
On a monthly basis until September 30, 2021, DOJ shall report to
the Director of OMB, the Bureau of Fiscal Service in the
Department of the Treasury, the PRAC, and the appropriate
congressional committees on any obligation or expenditure of
large covered funds, including loans and awards.1
CARES Act, §
15011(b)(1)(A)
Not Specified
Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
DOJ shall submit to the PRAC a plan describing how it will use
covered funds.2
CARES Act, §
15011(b)(1)(B)
June 25, 2020
Not later than 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter,
each covered recipient shall submit to DOJ and the PRAC a report
that contains—(A) the total amount of large covered funds
received from DOJ; (B) the amount of large covered funds
received that were expended or obligated for each project or
activity; (C) a detailed list of all projects or activities for which
large covered funds were expended or obligated (including the
name, a description, and the number of  jobs created or retained
as a result of the project or activity, and (D) detailed information
on any level of subcontracts or subgrants awarded by the covered
recipient or its subcontractors or subgrantees.3
CARES Act, §
15011(b)(2)
July 10, 2020

1 The term “large covered funds” means covered funds that amount to more than $150,000. CARES Act,
Pub. L. 116-136 §15011(a)(3).
2 “Covered funds” are any funds, including loans, that are made available in any form to any non-
Federal entity, not including an individual, under— (A) this Act;  (B) the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116–123); (C) the Families First Coronavirus Response Act
(Public Law 116–127); or (D) any other Act primarily making appropriations for the Coronavirus response and
related activities. CARES Act, Pub. L. 116-136 §15010(a)(6).
3 Each agency, in coordination with the PRAC and the Director of OMB shall provide user-friendly
means for covered recipients to meet requirements of this subsection. Federal agencies may use existing
mechanisms to ensure that information under this subsection is reported accurately.

Not later than 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter, the
PRAC, in consultation with the agency that made large covered
funds available to any covered recipient shall make the
information in reports submitted under paragraph (2) publicly
available by posting the information on the website established
under CARES Act § 15010(g).
CARES Act, §
15011(b)(3)
July 30, 2020
Effective for the June 2020 reporting period, agencies with COVID-
19 relief funding must submit DATA Act Files A, B and C on a
monthly basis. Files B and C must include all Treasury accounts
containing a COVID-19-related DEFC domain value in the agencies'
GTAS submission for that period. These submissions must also
include a running total of outlays
 for each award in File C for all
records containing a DEFC domain value. Monthly submissions of
Files A, B and C must be certified by the DATA Act Senior
Accountable Official or financial representative designee for
COVID-19 related funding.
OMB Memo M-20-
21, Appendix A,
Section III
July 2020
Effective with the issuance of this Memorandum, OMB hereby
instructs agencies using the General Services Administration's
SmartPay program to identify relevant transactions in their
servicing bank' s Electronic Access System (EAS) during the
reconciliation process by adding "COVID" as the identifier for
transactions. Agencies not using an EAS must apply the "COVID"
identifier to appropriate transactions in internal systems in
anticipation of providing such information as requested by OMB.
OMB Memo M-20-
21, Appendix A,
Section VII
Immediately
DOJ OIG Ongoing Efforts
The OMB memo specifically encouraged OIG’s to develop plans to leverage their
new surge of resources to prevent and detect waste, fraud, and abuse related to agency
implementation of the relief legislation. OMB urged the OIG community and the newly
created Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) to work closely with OMB
and their respective agencies to coordinate COVID-19-related oversight efforts, while
leveraging available technology to minimize burden, avoid duplicative efforts, and to re-
prioritize lower priority audit work to allow agencies and OIGs to better support higher
priority COVID-19 work.
Upon passage of the CARES Act, the DOJ OIG moved swiftly to reassess its current
workload to ensure robust oversight of the $1.007 billion received by DOJ, which included a
$2 million supplement to the OIG.  To date, the DOJ OIG has taken the following actions to
support and provide robust oversight of the Department of Justice’s COVID-19
responsibilities:
•
Contributed to the development of the PRAC’s Top COVID-19 challenges document,
by establishing the top COVID-19 challenges facing DOJ.

•
Initiating a survey to the ATF, DEA, FBI, USAOs, and USMS to better understand the
effects of COVID-19 on investigative operations.
•
Initiated a series of remote inspections of facilities housing BOP inmates during the
COVID-19 pandemic. These inspections will assess whether BOP-managed
institutions, contract institutions, and contract Residential Reentry Centers are
complying with available guidance and best practices regarding preventing,
managing, and containing potential COVID-19 outbreaks in correctional and
residential reentry settings. The OIG’s objectives include providing information
gathered during these inspections to assist BOP in mitigating the health risks arising
from the pandemic. As part of this work, the OIG is examining the Department’s and
the BOP’s use of home confinement and other early release authorities provided
under the CARES Act to manage the spread of COVID-19 within BOP facilities.
•
Initiated a review of the USMS response to the COVID-19 pandemic to assess
whether the USMS is complying with available guidance and best practices regarding
preventing, managing, and containing potential COVID-19 outbreaks in its detention
settings. The preliminary objective is to provide information gathered during this
review to assist the USMS in mitigating the health risks arising from the pandemic.
•
Initiated an audit of OJP’s oversight of the $850 million of CARES Act funding
intended to support state and local law enforcement efforts to respond to the
pandemic.
•
Initiated a limited scope review of the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s
(EOIR) handling of certain challenges presented in conducting operations during the
COVID-19 pandemic. The OIG will assess EOIR’s communication to staff, parties to
proceedings, and the public about immigration court operations; its use of personal
protective equipment; its use of worksite flexibilities; and its ability to mitigate health
risks while maintaining operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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