Republican House members today criticized the administrator of BP PLC's $20 billion compensation fund for people affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill over his handling of certain claims.

Kenneth Feinberg, a Washington, D.C., lawyer who oversees the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), was receptive to some of the comments but also defended his work during his appearance before the House Natural Resources Committee.

The fund is designed to encourage claimants not to file suit against BP in return for a speedy payment. The most recent numbers made available by the GCCF state that, as of Oct. 19, $5.44 billion has been paid to 548,967 claimants.

In his opening remarks, committee Chairman Doc Hastings (R-Wash.), noted that around 39 percent of approximately 500,000 claimants have been paid to date, a number he said was "simply unacceptable to the people whose livelihoods were disrupted by this disaster."

Lawmakers from the Gulf Coast also weighed in.

Rep. Jo Bonner (R-Ala.), given permission to participate despite not being a member of the committee, described the claims process as a "very flawed system" due to delays in claims and the disappointing outcomes for claimants he has spoken to.

Rep. Jeffrey Landry (R-La.) had more specific concerns concerning commercial shrimpers. They feel they are not being treated the same as individual shrimpers, who have been able to get their claims processed easily, he said.

Feinberg responded that he is open to "constructive criticism" and stressed that he had always said he would be willing to change the process based on any developments on the ground.

To that end, he added, "within the next few weeks" he would announce new rules for handling claims from shrimpers.

"We do not discriminate against commercial shrimpers," he said.

Generally, Feinberg defended his role, noting that the large number of claims that were rejected -- just over 100,000 -- were due to lack of documentation or because the claimants were not eligible.

In response to questions about whether BP and the Obama administration have any say in what he does, Feinberg vigorously asserted his independence.

The Justice Department has an oversight role, he said, but the White House has not been in contact since the GCCF was set up.

As for BP, it has no involvement in processing claims, Feinberg added.

Democrats, including ranking member Edward Markey of Massachusetts, were generally more supportive of Feinberg's efforts, but they did share some concerns with Republicans about the long-term effects of the spill and whether claimants will be able to retain claims once the GCCF closes its doors in 2013.

Feinberg said that after the facility closes, any leftover funds would revert to BP. Claimants could then ask BP for compensation or file a lawsuit.

Hearing next week

In a related development, Markey revealed today that Hastings has agreed to schedule a second hearing next week on the joint Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement and Coast Guard report into the Deepwater Horizon incident.

The ranking member has been pushing for BP CEO Robert Dudley and the chief executives of other companies involved in the spill to be called to testify.