Coronavirus Relief: Pelosi Annnounces Panel To Oversee COVID-19 Funds Distribution

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a special House committee to oversee distribution of more than $2.2 trillion in coronavirus relief funds, saying she wants to ensure the money is spent carefully and effectively.

Pelosi told reporters the bipartisan panel would be responsible not only for the three measures already signed into law, including the $2.2 trillion CARES Act adopted a week ago, but any future relief measures. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., was to lead the effort.

“The panel will root out waste, fraud and abuse, and will protect against price gouging, profiteering and political favoritism,” Pelosi said, adding, “Where there's money there's also frequently mischief, and we want to just make sure that the funds that are expended, that are put out there, are done so with the conditions that we had in the legislation.”

A five-member House-Senate oversight commission also was to be appointed to oversee how Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin distributes $500 billion allocated under the CARES Act to help industries, businesses and local governments hurt by the pandemic.

The CARES Act was aimed at mitigating the economic damage from the pandemic, which has seen stay-at-home orders implemented across the country and the shuttering of nonessential businesses to stem the spread of COVID-19. By early afternoon Thursday, the number of confirmed coronavirus infections in the United States topped 226,000 with 5,316 deaths.

"The panel will root out waste, fraud and abuse. It will protect against price-gauging, profiteering and political favoritism," Pelosi said during a press call. "The fact is, we do need transparency and accountability."

Trump has been critical of congressional oversight efforts and said he will treat as “hortatory” requirements that the administration consult with Congress over who will police distribution of the funds, saying he sees no reason for the Special Inspector General to report promptly to Congress without executive permission. He said Democrats’ insistence that transparency requirements be included in the CARES Act was unnecessary and just resulted in delaying the measure.

Pelosi and President Trump have both called for a fourth wave of economic relief to be passed soon in the form of a $2 trillion infrastructure package, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he is in no hurry to consider such action despite indications the nation already is in recession, including the announcement Thursday more than 6.6 million initial unemployment claims were filed last week, bringing the two-week total to 10 million.