The Senate Banking Committee took its first look at spending under the massive CARES Act, which Congress approved in March to provide assistance to individuals, businesses and local governments affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin were pressed by senators about their stewardship of specific aspects of the approximately $2 trillion relief package at Tuesday's remote hearing.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department and Federal Reserve have lent hardly any money under a $500 billion fund created by the economic rescue law passed in response to the coronavirus crisis, a congressional oversight panel says in a new report.

The Treasury fund is being used to guarantee new, expansive Federal Reserve lending programs to companies, states and cities that could be leveraged to reach as much as $4.5 trillion.

The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee is holding a hearing Tuesday to review spending under the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, after a report was released detailing money meant to help businesses as well as state and local governments hurting financially as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a written statement ahead of the hearing, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin discussed the dire condition of the economy, claiming that the situation will improve as the country gradually reopens.

House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal escalated the fight over President Donald Trump's tax returns Friday afternoon when he issued subpoenas for the documents to Department of Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig.

The Treasury Department had previously rejected Neal's request for six years of the president's tax returns.

The Treasury Department said Monday that the Senate-approved tax reform plan would pay for itself and more, actually boosting revenue by $300 billion over 10 years.

The fight for the direction of Donald Trump’s presidency between the Goldman Sachs branch of the West Wing and hardcore conservatives is spilling into the Treasury Department, threatening Trump’s next agenda item of overhauling the tax code.

President Obama signed an order Sunday directing his administration to begin issuing waivers to Iran nuclear sanctions — but the waivers will only go into effect once Iran meets its obligations under the agreement limiting its nuclear program.

The presidential memorandum marks what's being called "adoption day" for the international agreement intended to roll back Iran's nuclear program. The milestone, four administration officials said, is a mere formality, driven more by the calendar than by any action by Iran.

The U.S. Treasury posted a $2 billion surplus in December, making the deficit for calendar year 2014 the smallest since 2007.

Over the previous 12 months, the government reported a deficit of $488 billion, down from $560 billion for calendar year 2013.