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August 07, 2020
The Next Coronavirus Relief Bill Must Address Massive Oversight Issues
As Congress considers another coronavirus relief bill, it must not only build an effective and competent oversight mechanism, but also protect that oversight from interference by the executive branch. While the CARES Act, passed in March, created several oversight mechanisms—including the Congressional Oversight Commission, the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery, and the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee—oversight was slow to start, ineffective, and inhibited by the president. This time must be different.
Congress must commit to working in a bipartisan manner to quickly appoint oversight officials.
The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) was created to oversee the government’s implementation of the CARES Act in its entirety, but it has faced intense executive interference and is still without leadership. Within days of being nominated to chair the committee, President Donald Trump fired Glenn Fine; furthermore, Trump left the position of Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR) vacant for over two months.
Read the full article from The National Interest.
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