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1 1 (July 29, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govdbeu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: 01;0i E.$~ & July 29, 2020 COVID-19 and Foreign Assistance: Congressional Oversight Framework and Current Activities In March 2020, Congress enacted two supplemental appropriations measures that included a combined $1.59 billion for foreign assistance programs to prevent, prepare for, and respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID- 19; P.L. 116-123, P.L. 116-136). Congress established mechanisms to oversee the implementation of these funds, but concerns some have raised about oversight have intensified amid media reporting on the implementation of COVID-19 assistance by the State Department (State) and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Some reports suggest that planning and spending practices have left agencies unable to effectively address global COVID-19-related needs. Other stakeholders have expressed frustration with the agencies' public reporting, citing a lack of transparency. The first supplemental measure, P.L. 116-123, directed that funds were to be subject to notification procedures as required by regular appropriations (§401). Section 406 of that act sets additional reporting requirements for the Secretary of State and USAID Administrator (Table 1). Table I. Reporting Requirements, P.L. 116-123 Requirement Timeframe Joint Strategy to prevent, Within I5 days of prepare for, and respond to enactment coronavirus abroad Plan for spending funds to Within 30 days of support the joint strategy enactment Updated spending report Every 60 days until Sept. detailing changes, including new 30, 2020; every 180 days obligations and expenditures after until all funds are expended Source: P.L. 116-123, Section 406. Notes: All reports are to be submitted to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. The second supplemental appropriations bill that included foreign assistance funds, P.L. 116-136, directed that funds appropriated in that act be subject to the same reporting requirements outlined in P.L. 116-123 (§21003). This notification and reporting structure is similar to prior supplemental funding for global health emergencies. For example, supplemental foreign assistance funds to address the West Africa Ebola outbreak in FY2015 and the Zika virus in FY2017 (through P.L. 113-235, Division J, Section 9003, and P.L. 114-223, Division B, Section 203, respectively) included similar requirements for spending plans and updates. Neither the Ebola nor Zika supplemental foreign assistance funding required that the Secretary of State and USAID Administrator submit a strategy for the response before funds could be obligated. On March 24, State issued the Joint Strategy for Supplemental Funding, which organizes response efforts under four pillars: 1. Protect American citizens overseas, ensure the continuation of U.S. government operations overseas, and communicate effectively about COVID-19. 2. Strengthen global health institutions to address the spread of COVID-19 and its possible future reemergence. 3. Prevent, prepare for, and respond to COVID-19 in existing and potential new humanitarian settings. 4. Prepare for, mitigate, and address economic, security, stabilization, and governance challenges that may emerge as a result of COVID-19. Each pillar largely aligns with a funding account included in the supplemental appropriations acts. USAID and State are supporting Pillar One largely through their operational accounts (not presented in this product). Pillar Two aligns largely with Global Health Programs (GHP) account activities; Pillar Three with Migration and Refugee Assistance (MRA) and International Disaster Assistance (IDA) account activities; and Pillar Four with Economic Support Fund (ESF) activities. Assistance has been committed to over 120 countries, largely in line with broader foreign assistance spending. (Congress did not allocate supplemental funds to specific countries; Figure 1.) Sub-Saharan Africa is the largest recipient region. Two nontraditional recipients include $50 million in ESF to Italy and over 200 ventilators to Russia. Figure I. Committed COVID- 19 Assistance by Region == ........... =....... =. ........... Source: State Foreign Assistance Bureau. Notes: East Asia/Pacific includes Afghanistan. K~:> p\w -- , gnom goo mppm qq\ a , q 'S I 11LULANUALiN,

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