Congressional Research Service IN11236 (Oversight Provisions in H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act)

Summary

A Congressional Research Service Insight, IN11236, by Ben Wilhelm, dated March 12, 2020, on the oversight provisions in H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act. It states that President Donald Trump signed the act on March 6, 2020, and that it provides a total of $8.3 billion in supplemental funding for the U.S. response to COVID-19. It notes that Congress had begun overseeing the federal response through committee hearings, and that H.R. 6074 makes explicit a number of requirements on the type and frequency of information Congress will receive and on how funds may be spent.

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INSIGHTi

Oversight Provisions in H.R. 6074, the
Coronavirus Preparedness and Response
Supplemental Appropriations Act

Ben Wilhelm
Analyst in Government Organization and Management

March 12, 2020
President Donald Trump signed H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental
Appropriations Act, on March 6, 2020. It provides a total of $8.3 billion in supplemental funding to
support the response of the United States to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Prior to the passage of H.R. 6074, Congress had already begun to oversee the federal government’s
response to COVID-19 with committee hearings in both the House and the Senate. Other committees are
planning additional hearings in the coming weeks, and the Trump Administration has also been providing
regular briefings.
This voluntary flow of information among Congress, senior Administration leaders, and frontline experts
will facilitate Congress’s response to COVID-19. If lines of communication remain open, voluntary
information sharing may prove to be sufficient to meet Congress’s needs and expectations for oversight.
However, H.R. 6074 makes explicit a number of requirements regarding both the type and frequency of
information Congress will receive.
H.R. 6074 appropriates significant funding for specific responses to COVID-19 and sets explicit
requirements regarding how funds may be spent. The specificity of these conditions, as well as ongoing
development of the outbreak, make it particularly important that Congress receive information in a timely
manner. Even relatively short delays may prevent Congress from ensuring that the executive branch is
following its instructions. The reporting requirements in H.R. 6074 are designed to improve the executive
branch’s ability to provide timely information to Congress.

Congressional Research Service
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IN11236

CRS INSIGHT
Prepared for Members and
Committees of Congress
Congressional Research Service 2

This Insight details the oversight provisions included in H.R. 6074. CRS has produced several other
written products related to COVID-19, some of which are linked at the bottom of this Insight. All CRS
materials on the subject are available on CRS.gov.

Consultation and Reporting Requirements in H.R. 6074
H.R. 6074 creates the following reporting requirements for entities receiving supplemental
appropriations:
 Title III appropriates $300 million to be transferred into the Infectious Disease Rapid
Response Reserve Fund. If the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) declares an infectious disease emergency and seeks to use the fund (as
authorized by the third proviso of Section 231 of Division B of P.L. 115-245), the
Secretary must, in consultation with the director of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, report to the Appropriations Committees every 14 days for one year from the
date of the declaration “as long as such report[s] would detail obligations in excess of
$5,000,000” or upon the request of either committee.
 Title III also appropriates $300 million to the HHS Public Health and Social Services
Emergency Fund for the purchase of “vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics” to respond
to COVID-19. In order to access these funds, the HHS Secretary must certify to the
Appropriations Committees that the funds are necessary in addition to other funds
appropriated in the bill.
 Section 302 authorizes the HHS Secretary to enter into personal services contracts to
respond to COVID-19 following notification to the Appropriations Committees.
 Section 305 requires that the HHS Secretary provide to the Appropriations Committees a
detailed spend plan for the funds appropriated to HHS no later than 30 days after
enactment of the act (i.e., April 6). HHS is required to update the plan every 60 days until
September 30, 2024. Each spend plan submission must also include a listing of all new
contract obligations in excess of $5 million and the amount of each of those obligations.
 Section 401 establishes that funds appropriated under Title IV of the act to the
Department of State and United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
are subject to the “regular notification procedures” of the Appropriations Committees.
This requirement does not apply to $300 million appropriated for International Disaster
Assistance.
 Section 404 allows funds appropriated in the act for Global Health Programs and the
Economic Support Fund to be contributed to international organizations following
consultation with the Appropriations Committees.
 Section 406(a) requires the Secretary of State and the USAID administrator to submit a
strategy to “prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus abroad” to the
Appropriations Committees within 15 days of the enactment of the act (i.e., March 21).
 Section 406(b) requires the Secretary of State and the USAID administrator to provide
the Appropriations Committees a report on the proposed uses of appropriated funds by
country and project no later than 30 days after enactment (i.e., April 6). It also requires
updates every 60 days until September 30, 2022, and then every 180 days until all funds
have been expended.
 Section 505 requires the comptroller general of United States to consult with the
Appropriations Committees on the “oversight of activities supported with funds
appropriated by this Act.”
Congressional Research Service 3

 H.R. 6074 also includes several provisions amending existing transfer authorities and
authorizing the transfer of funds between specified accounts, subject to notification of the
Appropriations Committees.

Supplemental Funding for Select Inspectors General
A portion of the supplemental funding appropriated in H.R. 6074 is directed to the Offices of the
Inspectors General for HHS and USAID. Section 306 provides for the transfer of up to $2 million from
the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund to the Office of the Inspector General for HHS.
The inspector general is required to consult with the Appropriations Committees prior to the obligation of
funds regarding how such funds will be used.
H.R. 6074 also appropriates $1 million to the Office of the Inspector General for USAID for the oversight
of USAID activities funded by the act.

For More Information
CRS Report R46219, Overview of U.S. Domestic Response to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19),
coordinated by Sarah A. Lister and Kavya Sekar
CRS In Focus IF11421, COVID-19: Global Implications and Responses, by Sara M. Tharakan et al.
CRS Legal Sidebar LSB10415, COVID-19: Current Travel Restrictions and Quarantine Measures, by
Edward C. Liu
CRS Report R46209, Coronavirus Disease Outbreak (COVID-19): CRS Experts, by Matthew B.
Barry

IN11236 · VERSION 1 · NEW
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