ATR and CFA Call for More Accountability With Regard to TARP

In a recent letter to U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney(D, NY-14) ATR and CFA expressed their support for one of her bills which would strengthen accountability relating to the Troubled Assets Relief Program :

Your bill would add an important oversight component to the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), the opaque nature of which is infuriating taxpayers who are forced to bear the financial burden of this package.   The current outrage over A.I.G.’s bonus payments are just another manifestation of the lack of oversight and accountability with regard to the implementation of the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008,” and government bailouts in general.

 

The fact that relevant data is currently widely dispersed over various agencies and in various formats hinders appropriate oversight efforts. Your bill would consolidate and transform that data into a serialized database hosted by the Department of the Treasury and accessible to the Special Inspector General of the Troubled Assets Relief Program, the Comptroller General, and the Congressional oversight panel. Consequently, those tasked with monitoring the implementation of the program will be provided with a useful tool to better monitor and trace transactions, and thereby spot potential problems in a timely fashion.

 

Your bill constitutes an important step towards greater accountability. Nonetheless, we believe that greater disclosure of who received TARP funding (from primary, over intermediary to final recipients) and relevant documentation of these transactions via a searchable online database directly to the American taxpayer is also necessary to provide full transparency and accountability, and we would encourage you and your colleagues to work toward that end.