The more than $5 million in donations to the Aurora Victim Relief Fund has begun trickling to some of the families of the 12 killed and 58 injured in the movie-theater shooting five weeks ago, yet the distribution of almost $4.6 million remains undetermined.

The 7/20 Recovery Committee, a loosely organized group of representatives from community organizations and government entities, is charged with deciding who gets what and why.

The committee meets weekly, but no spokesperson for the handful of entities contacted, including the governor’s office, the city of Aurora and the fund administrator, knew whether the meetings were open to the public and media.

The month-old group has not yet selected leadership, city of Aurora spokeswoman Kim Stuart said.

“The group has created a structure and established the purpose of the committee,” Stuart said. “Very soon, they will identify who will fill the leadership roles of the committee.”

Aurora city staff, including Deputy City Manager Nancy Freed, have provided administrative support and coordinated the meetings for the group.

The committee announced Aug. 17 it had disbursed $350,000 through the Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance to help meet some of the immediate needs of those affected by the shooting. An additional $100,000 went to 10 Aurora community nonprofits.

Some of the victims’ families have scheduled a news conference for 11 a.m. Tuesday

. They would not disclose any specifics, but spokeswoman Anita Busch said they would relate some of the “behind-the-scenes events (that) have occurred, which the families who lost loved ones need to address for the benefit of all victims.”

The Aurora Victim Relief Fund was co-founded by the Community First Foundation with Gov. John Hickenlooper’s office. Community First administers the fund, which receives online donations through GivingFirst.org. The foundation has waived all customary administrative fees and has footed $17,949 in third-party processing fees, such as those charged by credit-card companies, Community First chief financial officer Ken Kirwin said.

Kirwin said the millions held by the foundation for the Aurora victims are being kept liquid and drawing little return in a conservative short-term account. The foundation eventually will also add any interest earned to the fund.

Community First executive vice president Cheryl Haggstrom said it isn’t yet decided but is “highly unlikely” that the remaining funds will all be distributed through COVA. There could be provision, she said, for the long-term medical and mental-health needs of the injured and others affected by the shooting — including those in attendance at the theater that night, tenants of the building where accused shooter James Holmes lived and even first responders.

“While $5 million sounds like a lot of money — and it is a lot of money — it’s not going to go that far for long-term needs,” Haggstrom said.

Haggstrom, Stuart and others said the right people and groups are deciding how the money will be distributed, and that, if there’s any appearance it’s not fully accountable to victims, donors and the public, it’s only because of the newness of the 7/20 Recovery Committee.

“It’s a complex process,” Haggstrom said, “and we were impacted by gag order” in terms of contacting victims.

Electa Draper: 303-954-1276, edraper@denverpost.com or twitter.com/electadraper