Memorandum M-20-21: Implementation Guidance for Supplemental Funding Provided in Response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Summary

OMB Memorandum M-20-21, dated April 10, 2020, tells the heads of departments and agencies how to manage and report the COVID-19 supplemental funding enacted in Public Law 116-123, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and the CARES Act. It asks agencies to balance speed with transparency under three core principles: mission achievement, expediency, and transparency and accountability. Agencies are told to use existing financial transparency mechanisms, with spending data published on USASpending.gov, so recipients need not report the estimated number of jobs created or retained. The memorandum expands use of the Disaster Emergency Fund Code (DEFC) to track COVID-19 money and sets a reporting timetable, with monthly DATA Act reporting beginning in July for the month of June.

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Full text

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
WASHINGTON , D.C. 20503

April 10, 2020

M-20-21

MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

FROM: Rus_sell T_. Vought
Actmg Duector
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SUBJECT: Implementation Guidance for Supplemental Funding Provided in Response to the
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

The Federal Government's aggressive response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-
19) includes an unprecedented economic relief package for Americans in need. A series of laws,
including the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020
(Public Law 116-123), the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA; Public Law 116-
127), and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Public Law 116-
136), provide direct economic relief to the American people, including individuals and small
businesses, while providing health care resources to the front line battles where medical
professionals are fighting the virus and defending the lives of Americans.

Time is of the essence, and the Administration is committed to the rapid delivery of these
funds to the COVID-19 relief and response efforts. 1 At the same time, spending transparency
and regular reporting will provide important accountability mechanisms to help safeguard
taxpayer dollars.

This Memorandum directs agencies to leverage and continue to employ existing financial
transparency and accountability mechanisms wherever possible. In balancing speed with
transparency, agencies are to consider the three core principles below:

• Mission achievement - Federal managers and recipients at all levels should use data and
evidence to achieve program objectives;
• Expediency - Agencies should rapidly issue awards and fund programs to meet crucial
needs;and
• Transparency and accountability - Agencies must report information on awards to
provide the public with information in a clear, accurate, and timely manner.

1 For purposes of this Memorandum, "COVID-19 relief and response" refers to the Federal Government ' s response

to the national public health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as a result of
confirmed cases, retroactive to January 27, 2020, pursuant to section 319 of the Public Health Services Act (42
U.S.C. § 247d).
Additional guidance providing further details related to implementation of COVID-19
relief and response efforts will be forthcoming, as needed. Questions related to this guidance can
be directed to coronaresponse@omb.eop.gov.

I. Mission Achievement

The Office of Management and Budget (0MB) is working closely with agencies to
develop plans to implement the COVID-19 relief legislation. Agencies are directed to work with
their Resource Management Offices (RMOs) to identify key program design questions that must
be resolved to execute spending plans. Agencies should document expected new processes,
identify intended outcomes, and label key risk areas, working with their Evaluation Officers and
Performance Improvement Officers.

Federal agencies are providing COVID-19 relief funds to recipients including individuals
and businesses through a variety of programs. To the extent these programs overlap among
common recipients, agencies should take additional steps to ensure the integrity of these
payments, reduce burden on recipients, and promote operational efficiency.

Agencies need to manage these new funds and awards consistent with their respective
mission performance objectives and plans. Agencies also must incorporate reporting of
performance on COVID-19 relief funding into their established mission performance plans and
reports, and must review progress as part of their performance, evidence-building and enterprise
risk management routines to the maximum extent possible, consistent with guidance included in
0MB Circulars A-11 and A-123. Specifically, agency Deputy Secretaries or Chief Operating
Officers must review at least quarterly the progress made on program performance under the
COVID-19 relief legislation.

Each agency must report monthly to 0MB and others 2 on any obligation or expenditure
of "large covered funds," 3 including loans and loan guarantees, awards, pursuant to section
1501 l(b) of the CARES Act, as describe in Appendix A. In addition, 0MB, together with the
Council of Economic Advisors, the Department of the Treasury, and the Small Business
Administration, is required by section 15011 (c )(1) of the CARES Act to provide quarterly
reports that detail the effect of COVID-19 relief funds on employment, estimated economic

2Under section 15011 (b) of the CARES Act, agencies must also report to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service in the
Department of the Treasury, the new Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), and the applicable
Congressional committees.
3 0MB understands "large covered funds" to mean the following:

(1) any funds made available in any form (e.g., grant, cooperative agreement, contract, loan, loan guarantee,
award, or other mechanism);
(2) to any non-Federal entity, not including an individual;
(3) where the award amount exceeds $150,000; and
(4) the appropriation supporting the award was provided by any supplemental appropriations Act for
coronavirus response and related activities, including but not limited to the CARES Act (Public Law 116-
136), the second supplemental (FFCRA) (Public Law 116-127), and the first coronavirus supplemental
(Public Law 116-123).
See sections 1501 l(a)(3) (defining "large covered funds" in reference to "covered funds") and 15010(a)(6) (defining
"covered funds").

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growth, and other key economic indicators, including information about impacted industries.
0MB anticipates that in most instances, centrally available economic data will provide sufficient
information for 0MB to prepare these quarterly reports without the need for recipients of relief
funds to report the estimated number of jobs created or retained by a project or activity. 0MB
may request more frequent reporting requirements as needed.

II. Expediency in Awarding Funds to Meet Crucial Needs

To date, 0MB has issued express guidance to agencies on exercising emergency-related
flexibilities for procurement4 and financial assistance 5 that agencies should leverage to speed the
award and payment process for the new relief funds. Agencies must continue to use standard
best practices that include the internal controls necessary for prudently planning for, awarding,
and managing contracts, grants, loans, and other forms of assistance. Where the new relief
legislation requires agencies to undertake new or modify existing activities that affect payments,
agencies are to balance the imperatives of expediency and good stewardship. Agencies should
prioritize the following considerations in their implementation:

a. Ensuring that qualified, skilled, and appropriately trained personnel are overseeing
awards made under the new relief legislation; .
b. Streamlining regulations and internal processes, including issuing waivers and
delegating decision-making where appropriate to empower managed risk-taking and
innovative thinking;
c. Balancing the need for competition with timely execution of funding;
d. Balancing the need for expediency with steps to mitigate risk of fraud, waste, abuse,
and improper payments;
e. Ensuring that resources go to evidence-based programs whenever possible; ·and
f. Regularly communicating with and encouraging coordination among state and local
governments, tribes, and nonprofit entities for financial assistance, which 0MB can
facilitate.

III. Transparency and Accountability

Accurately recording and tracking funding for awards made under the new relief
legislation is essential to providing relief to citizens and businesses, facilitating oversight, and
creating accountability for results. Agencies should continue to apply sound data management
principles to make evidence-based decisions, protect information as appropriate, and provide
open data for analysis and public use. Descriptions of awards should be in plain language,

4 0MB, M-20-18, Managing Federal Contract Pe,formance Issues Associated with the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-

19) (March 20, 2020), available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/M-20-18 .pdf.
5 0MB, M-20-20, Repurposing Existing Federal Financial Assistance Programs and Awards to Support the

Emergency Response to the Novel Coronavirus (COVJD- 19) (April 9, 2020), available at
https://www .whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/M-20-20:pdf; 0MB, M-20-17, Administrative Relieffor
Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-
19) due to Loss of Operations (March 19, 2020), available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp
content/uploads/2020/03/M-20-l 7.pdf; and 0MB, M-20-11 , Administrative Relieffor Recipients and Applicants of
Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) (March 9, 2010), available
at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/M-20- l l .pdf.

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consistent with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and existing 0MB guidance.

Agencies must have processes to ensure that the data reported is of sufficient quality for
public reporting and internal decision-making purposes. 0MB will seek to minimize the burden
on agencies by leveraging existing data and reporting tools to collect and present information,
and providing information to agencies on existing data quality guidance and responsibilities.

Offices oflnspectors General (OIGs) should be developing plans to leverage their new
surge of resources to prevent and detect waste, fraud, and abuse related to agency
implementation of the relief legislation. The OIG community and the newly created Pandemic
Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) should also work closely with 0MB and the
agencies to coordinate COVID-:-19-related oversight efforts, leverage available technology to
minimize burden and duplicate efforts, and re-prioritize lower priority audit work to allow
agencies and OIGs to better support higher priority COVID-19 work. See Appendix A for more
details on reporting instructions and Appendix B for a consolidated timeline of requirements.

IV. Adjustments to Current Agency Reporting Deadlines

Given the significant surge in resource demands on agencies to respond rapidly to the
COVID-19 crisis and immediately implement the relief legislation, 0MB is requesting that
agencies assess the need to adjust existing reporting and audit deadlines over the next 60 days,
using a risk-based framework that considers the need to balance existing statutory and regulatory
compliance requirements with the surge in new workload associated with the COVID-19 crisis.
Operating in this environment will require the reprioritization of work to continue supporting a
more resilient Government and to meet competing demands based on risk-based prioritization.
0MB is working with agencies to grant relief from OMB-established deadlines. 0MB asks that
agencies work closely with the Department of the Treasury, Offices oflnspectors General, the
Government Accountability Office, and other stakeholders on how best to prioritize agency work
and obtain temporary extensions in reporting and other requirements, as appropriate, over the
next 60 days.

0MB Memorandum M-20-04, Fiscal Year 2019-2020 Guidance on Federal Information
. Security and Privacy Management Requirements, requires most agencies to report quarterly on
their information security programs in accordance with the Federal Information Security
Modernization Act of2014 (FISMA). Because the COVID-19 national emergency may disrupt
the ability of agencies to report, 0MB is pausing the fiscal year (FY) 2020 Quarter 2 FISMA
Chief Information Officer metric collection until further notice.

Additionally, the FY 2020 Quarter 1 Quarterly Priority Goal Reporting required by the
Government Performance and Results Modernization Act is being merged with the FY 2020
Quarter 2 (Q2) performance update. Agencies and Cross-Agency Priority Goal Teams therefore
should update their FY 2020 Q2 Implementation Action Plans to summarize all progress
achieved to date, and milestones accomplished through Q2. See 0MB Circular A-11, section
200, for the submission and publication timeline for the FY 2020 Q2 Quarterly Performance
Update.

4 .
Appendix A

Agency Reporting Instructions for COVID-19-Related Funding

The guidance below describes the steps agencies should take to implement the
requirements of Sections 15010 and 15011 of the CARES Act. These sections require Federal
agencies and recipients to report on the use of covered funds, agencies in coordination with
0MB to provide user-friendly means for recipients to meet these requirements, and the PRAC to
leverage existing technology and resources to the greatest extent practicable to meet the
requirements of these sections. 0MB looks forward to coordinating with the PRAC to
efficiently implement these requirements.

This guidance allows agencies and recipients to meet the CARES Act reporting
requirements by utilizing, with minimal modifications, existing reporting requirements within
agency financial systems and existing reporting processes under the Federal Funding and
Transparency Act (FF AT A), as amended by the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act
(DATA Act). Once agencies have met the requirements described below, information required
to be reported by poth agencies and recipients should be publicly available on
USASpending.gov. 0MB does not expect that additional reporting by agencies or recipients
should be necessary to meet the requirements of these sections of the statute.

I. Expand Usage of the Disaster Emergency Fund Code for Tracking COVID-19
Supplemental Funding

0MB previously issued Memorandum M-18-08, Guidance on Disaster and Emergency
Funding Tracking (February 2, 2018). This memorandum requires agencies to track spending of
amounts designated in appropriations Acts as emergency or for disaster relief pursuant to section
251 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended,
(BBEDCA) or from accounts that received such amounts via non-expenditure transfer. Agencies
report within the Government-wide Treasury Account Symbol Adjusted Trial Balance System
(GTAS) a DEFC attribute, either classifying funding as non-emergency or non-disaster
designated appropriations, or with a unique DEFC value that 0MB provides for other specific
appropriation act and designation. This existing requirement has helped increase transparency
about the status of funds designated as emergency or for disaster relief and has eliminated any
need for 0MB to conduct time-consuming, ad hoc data calls.

The guidance in M-18-08 did not extend to a significant portion of the funding provided
in the CARES Act since it did not meet the designation requirements. This guidance amends the
requirement in M-18-08 to use a unique DEFC value to include covered funds in the CARES Act
that are not designated as emergency pursuant to BBEDCA, in order to provide similar
transparency for CARES Act funding.

Agencies should work with their 0MB representative to identify situations where a
DEFC value cannot be used to track spending provided in the CARES Act, or if they identify
cases where funding provided in the COVID-19 supplementals are not being centrally tracked.
Some provisions in the new legislation, such as certain provisions that affect spending in
mandatory entitlement programs or extend current law, may be excluded from this requirement.
5
In these instances, agencies should work with their 0MB representative to identify an alternative
reporting approach to provide transparency on how the funds are spent.

Agencies should use the following DEFC codes for COVID-19 supplemental funding :

• DEFC "L" - PL 116-123 , designated as emergency
• DEFC "M" -PL 116-127, designated as emergency
• DEFC "N" -PL 116-136 (CARES Act) , designated as emergency
• DEFC "O" - PL 116-136 (CARES Act), not designated as emergency
• DEFC "Q" - Excluded from tracking, continue to use (non-emergency/non-disaster
. designated appropriations).

0MB will provide further unique DEFC values for any future COVID-19 relief
appropriations designated as emergency or for disaster relief. 0MB will work with agencies
separately on other mechanisms that may be used to identify agency spending related to COVID-
19 relief that is derived from base funding.

II. Extending DEFC Requirements to Data Provided for USASpending.gov

USASpending.gov provides detailed spending data for nearly all accounts across the
Federal Government. With the inclusion of the DEFC attribute in agency DATA Act reporting,
information on covered funds.will be available by obligation and expenditure at the award level
so that the American public will be have insight into how COVID-19 relief funds were spent.
This process provides low-burden transparency into how COVID-19 relief funds have been
distributed, thus increasing accountability at multiple levels and reducing the likelihood of waste,
fraud, and abuse, and provides a user-friendly mechanism for agencies and recipients to meet
their financial reporting requirements under sections 15010 and 15011 of the Act.

Agencies are required to report financial and award data to USASpending.gov via the
DATA Act broker. These submissions include summary financial data ("File A"), obligation
and outlay data by program activity and budget object class ("File B"), and summary award-level
obligation data ("File C"). Effective for the June 2020 reporting period, all agencies are required
to add the DEFC attribute to Files Band C.

In Files B and C, agencies must include the following DEFC domain values in their
reporting for the COVID-19 relief emergency supplemental appropriations : "L" (Public Law
116-123), "M" (Public Law 116-127), "N" and "O" (Public Law 116-136). Any future COVID-
19 relief funding receiving a unique DEFC domain value should also be included in the DATA
Act submission files. Agencies are not required to supply other DFEC domain values at this
time, including "Q". For funding that does not have a COVID-19-related domain value,
agencies should report a blank value in tlie DEFC field. All agencies who have determined they
are subject to DATA Act reporting are required to implement the addition of the DEFC attribute
for their DAT A Act submissions. This includes agencies who have not received COVID-19-
related funds.

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III. New Monthly and Outlay Reporting Requirements on Financial Data Spending for
USASpending.gov

The exceptional nature of the COVID-19 relief funding and the requirements of the
CARES Act require a greater frequency and comprehensiveness of reporting to provide required
transparency to the public. Monthly reporting, as required by statue, will also allow for greater
Executive branch oversight of spending related to covered funds.

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 6 for
each award in File C for all records containing a DEFC domain value. To support this new
requirement, all agencies that are not currently reporting within two weeks of issuance of an
award must now report financial assistance awards (File D2) to USASpending.gov within two
weeks of issuance. 7 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. Beginning in FY 2022 Ql , all agencies, includingthose without COVID-19 spending,
must begin reporting Files A, B, and C to USASpending.gov on a monthly basis, including
outlay data in file C, for all Treasury accounts reportable under DATA Act. To support
agencies ' timely submission of the above requirements, 0MB is working with the Department of
the Treasury to provide more detailed information on broker updates and appropriate user
friendly displays.

IV. Program Activity Reporting

As described in 0MB Circular A-11, the program activity data element is a key
organizing component that connects budget and funding requests as part of a coordinated
strategy to achieve goals and objectives. To better achieve the objectives of both the DATA Act
and the COVID-' 19 relief legislation, for all spending and activities related to COVID-19 relief
and non-COVID-19 relief, agencies must include "Program Activity" in File C for the FY 2021
Quarter 1 submission date.8 This instruction strengthens the connection across budget, spending,
award, performance information, and other results to be displayed on USASpending.gov,
supports Federal programs as they coordinate across agencies, and helps identify opportunities
for improved coordination across Federal programs and activities. This approach also reinforces
the Federal Performance Framework and Evidence Act's focus as a management system that
coordinates and aligns a broader complement of financial and programmatic data to enable
improved decision-making, accountability, and transparency in the Federal Government.

6 In File C, agencies currently have the option to report on a quarterly basis the GrossOutlay AmountByAward_ CPE.
Agencies will now be required to provide each GrossOutlayAmountByAward_ CPE on a monthly basis (i.e. "this
award had this much outlaid, year to-date, this month") for each Federal award with outlay activity and to break
down each GrossOutlayAmountByAward_CPE by Treasury Account Symbol (TAS), Program Activity, Object
Class, and DEFC.
7 This new requirement does not apply to loan reporting.

8 Waivers may be granted for up to one year, or longer at the 0MB Director's discretion.

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V. Management of Reporting and Data Integrity Risk Related to COVID-19 Response
Funding

Spending data that is consolidated in an interoperable and consistent format provides
transparency to taxpayers, while also enabling Federal leaders to make informed decisions.
0MB previously outlined these principles in Memorandum M-18-16 (revising Appendix A of
Circular A-123) (June 6, 2018). The quality of the information published on USASpending.gov
relies on agencies having effective Internal Controls Over Reporting (ICOR) for the input and
validation of the data they submit. Agencies must balance their new objectives under the
COVID-19 relief legislation to provide immediate relief with the institutional need to provide
complete, accurate, and timely reporting on relief funding.

Consistent with the CARES Act and this Memorandum, existing agency data quality
procedures, including those in the FAR for procurement, are sufficient for agencies to identify
and assess risks to reporting objectives and regulatory requirements over data quality for defined
areas, as these risks relate to agency spending data on COVID-19 response and related activities
to be reported to USASpending.gov. To that end, and in order to meet the reporting objectives of
the CARES Act, agencies should continue to leverage the existing requirements in M-18-16 for
Data Quality Plans until they expend their funds related to the COVID-19 response.

VI. National Interest Action Code for Procurement

On March 13, 2020, a National Interest Action (NIA) code (P20C) was added to the
Federal Procurement Data System to help identify procurement actions related to COVID-19
response. To promote full, clear, and consistent transparency in the tracking of COVID-related
procurement actions, agencies are directed to assign this NIA code to all procurement actions
reported into FPDS that are issued in response to the pandemic. This includes new awards for
supplies and services as well as modifications that are issued to address COVID-19, irrespective
of whether the contract being modified was originally awarded to address COVID-19. The code
should also be used in connection with any procurement authority, including but not limited to
special emergency procurement authorities identified under FAR Subpart 18.2. (Note: This
guidance modifies and supersedes guidance provided in Question 11 of 0MB Memorandum M-
20-18, Managing Federal Contract Performance Issues Associated with the Novel Coronavirus
(March 20, 2020).)

VII. Agency Requirements to Capture Reporting of Purchase Card Use

Tracking and reporting spending related to the COVID-19 response is critical to the
success of the economic relief provided to Americans. This responsibility extends to all
spending, including micro-purchases transacted on purchase and integrated cards. Effective with
the issuance of this Memorandum, 0MB hereby instructs agencies using the General Services
Administration's (GSA's) SmartPay® program must 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 0MB. GSA is developing training and additional instructions
to facilitate data capture in anticipation of future reporting.
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Appendix B
Timeline and requirements

Reporting Requirement This applies to Timeline
P.L. 116-123, Emergency: Existing reporting requirement for Currently reported to GTAS .
DEFC value " L" accounts designated as emergency.
P.L. 116-127, Emergency: Existing reporting requirement for Currently reported to GTAS.
DEFC value "M" accounts designated as emergency.
P.L 116-136, Emergency: Existing reporting requirement for Currently reported to GTAS.
DEFC value "N" accounts designated as emergency.
P.L. 116-136, Non-emergency: Most accounts that received non- Immediately. Aligned with GTAS
DEFC value "O" emergency funding in the CARES reporting windows.
Act.
Outlays in DATA Act File C (a All agencies subject to DATA Act DAT A Act Q3 reporting schedule
running total of outlays by award) reporting required to report under the will not change, which is to include
CARES Act provisions. outlays for FY 2020Q3. Monthly
reporting will begin in July for the
month of June. Monthly submission
will align to the GT AS reporting
schedule. Agencies will not report
outlays in Files A and B for Period
1.
Monthly Reporting for DAT A Act All agencies subject to DATA Act DATA Act Q3 reporting schedule
Files A, B and C , including all reporting required to report under the will not change, which is to include
DEFC values in Files B and C CARES Act provisions. the DEFC code for FY 2020 Q3.
Monthly reporting will begin in July
for the month of June. Monthly
submission will align to the GT AS
reporting schedule.
DEFC Code in DAT A Act Files B All agencies subject to DATA Act No later than with the monthly June
and C, including DEFC values "L" reporting. 2020 DATA Act submission.
through "O" and subsequent
COVID-19-related values
Twice monthly reporting Files D2 All agencies subject to DAT A Act No later than with the monthly June .
reporting. 2020 DAT A Act submission.
Program Activity in DATA Act File All agencies subject to DAT A Act FY2021 QI
C reporting
Monthly Reporting for DAT A Act All agencies subject to DATA Act FY 2022 QI
Files A, B, and C reporting.
Outlays in DAT A Act File C All agencies subject to DATA Act FY 2022 QI
reporting.
NIAC Consistent with the FAR and 0MB Through duration of NIA designated
guidance, agency procurement reporting period, directly in FPDS .
actions supporting COVID-19.
Purchase Cards All agencies required to report under Monthly submission will align to the
the CARES Act provisions. GTAS reporting schedule.

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