Policy Backgrounders

Backgrounder: Status of Spending Programs in COVID Relief Bills

February 03, 2023

The six COVID relief bills passed between March 2020 and March 2021 accounted for a total of $5.335 trillion in Federal spending, not all of which related directly to pandemic relief and response. Many of the pandemic relief and response programs were designed to be temporary. While in many circumstances, “temporary” programs become permanent, the COVID relief spending that has not become permanent is what has driven the sharp reduction in the annual Federal deficit, from $3.132 trillion in FY 2020 to $2.772 trillion in FY 2021 to $1.375 trillion in FY 2022 -- a fall of over $1.4 trillion in one fiscal year.  While this reduction is welcomed, it should not obscure the still very much needed budget reform and fiscal restraint that is required to address outsized debt the US has accumulated.

This Policy Brief examines some of the most significant temporary programs enacted as part of COVID relief legislation to identify those that have ended and those that have been continued through subsequent Congressional action.