POGO Adds American Rescue Plan Spending to COVID-19 Tracker

Media Contacts: Brandon Brockmyer, Director of Research at the Project On Government Oversight (POGO), [email protected]; or Caitlin MacNeal, Communications Director at POGO, [email protected]

(WASHINGTON)—The Project On Government Oversight this week updated its COVID-19 spending tracker to include the federal government’s latest spending in response to the pandemic.

The tracker now accounts for about $3 trillion in federal government spending: $1.2 trillion in loans, $1.4 trillion in direct payments, $306 billion in grants, and $64 billion in contracts.

Users will get the first significant glimpse into emergency spending under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the COVID-19 spending plan passed during the Biden administration. The law established several entirely new programs, including the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, and the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.

The update also includes data for existing programs: POGO added 4.4 million new Paycheck Protection Program loan records, accounting for more than $109 billion in loans.

“We’re pleased that our tracker now accounts for new spending authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act,” said Brandon Brockmyer, director of research at the Project On Government Oversight. “It’s crucial that we continue to track federal spending on COVID-19 relief. This data will help to identify any fraud and waste in the process and educate federal policymakers on how effective the emergency spending has been.”

POGO’s tracker allows users to search by agency or program, as well as by industry. The tracker also has a mapping feature that allows users to see how money was distributed across the U.S., drilling down to the state, county, and zip code level. The map feature includes demographic information on population and unemployment as well.

The “Accountability Flags” feature integrates contextual data from Good Jobs First’s COVID Stimulus Watch. This enables users to see whether a company that received a loan, grant, or contract has a history of penalties related to employment or contracting practices; environmental, health, or safety violations; or consumer protection, financial misconduct, or unfair competition.

View the tracker at https://covidtracker.pogo.org/