Billions In Bonuses Prove Big Wall Street Banks Still Don't Get It

Statement

Congresswoman Dina Titus of Nevada's Third District released the following statement today on reports that Bank of America and AIG, which received a taxpayer funded bailout, approved $4 billion and $100 million respectively in bonuses.

"The latest news that Wall Street banks plan to hand out large bonuses a year after they were rescued by a taxpayer bailout once again shows that they have learned nothing in the past year. To add insult to injury, AIG plans to pay out $100 million in bonuses to employees in its financial products division, the same unit whose risky bets put the company on the verge of collapse.

"I continue to hear stories from small business owners in my district who are struggling to get the credit they need to keep their doors open from banks that are refusing to lend. And too often, families that are fighting to avoid foreclosure have complained about banks that lose their paperwork, fail to return phone calls, and ignore their good-faith efforts to keep up with their mortgage payments. Yet despite having their companies saved by the American people, big Wall Street banks seem determined not to help Main Street, restricting lending while still paying out lavish bonuses.

"It's time to hold Wall Street banks accountable for their actions that brought our financial system to the brink of disaster. The House acted last year on important legislation to reign in Wall Street banks and increase oversight so that government regulators cannot fall asleep at the wheel. I urge the Senate to act quickly on financial reform, because with Wall Street banks set to pay out large bonuses again, it is clear they have not learned the lessons of the worst economic recession in a generation."

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