WASHINGTON: A non-partisan US regulator group said that the House of Representatives-approved USD 1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill includes measures not directly related to the pandemic, urging the Senate to pass a better targeted one.

Expressing concern to the giant relief bill that cleared the House on February 27, Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said in a statement that while some of the funds would go to key priorities, it is clear that the targeting of this bill could be improved, reports Xinhua news agency.

MacGuineas argued that the third round of rebate checks will go to many households that "don't need them", right as US incomes continue to "show strong growth". "It directs significant resources to those who have not been harmed by the pandemic or recession. Those policies may be popular or sensible, but they do not belong in this emergency bill," MacGuineas said.

"Specifically, state and local government budgets aren't in anywhere near as dire a situation as initially projected." The $1.9 trillion package includes $350 billion dollars to help pandemic-hit state and local governments balance their budgets.

According to data released last week by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, personal income soared 10 percent in January, and personal consumption expenditures increased 2.4 percent.

"Furthermore, the bill directs a substantial amount of funds to unrelated political objectives that have been around for years," MacGuineas noted.

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