Obama To Announce Plan Similar To Rep. Peters' To Ensure Bailout Money Repaid

Press Release

President Obama is expected to announce tomorrow a plan to assess a fee on the nation's largest banks to pay back taxpayers for any losses incurred from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (also known as the Wall Street Bailout). The president's announcement follows last month's U.S. House passage of an amendment authored by Congressman Gary Peters that called for similar action to ensure that American taxpayers will not lose one cent from government loans to large banks and other TARP recipient institutions. Congressman Peters' amendment to comprehensive Wall Street reform legislation (H.R. 4173, The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009) would require any shortfall in the taxpayer funded Wall Street bailout to be fully repaid by assessments on large financial institutions which pose systemic risk to the economy, the entities responsible for creating the global financial crisis.

"As large banks return to health, there is no reason why taxpayers should pay to clean up Wall Street's mess," said Congressman Peters. "I am extremely pleased that the White House is now also taking action to ensure that large financial institutions, rather than taxpayers, are responsible for losses from TARP. The measure I authored and the House passed would ensure that the bailout does not increase the national debt one bit and does not cost taxpayers one cent. With the president on board with this goal, I'm hopeful we can make it a reality."

According to reports, White House officials have said President Obama will announce that the plan to have the nation's largest banks pay for any TARP shortfalls will be included in his 2011 budget, which will be sent to Congress next month. As the House has already approved Congressman Peters' similar measure, White House action toward the same goal increases the likelihood that the principle embodied in Peters' amendment, having large financial institutions pay for losses from the Wall Street, will soon become reality.

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