WASHINGTON, DC - Senior Ways and Means Democrats today sent a letter to the Committee on Financial Services, urging that Congress provide additional oversight tools for the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). In the letter, the Members stress that Congressional oversight is “the only way to promote accountability and regain public trust in the use of Federal monies to stabilize the economy."
At a March hearing, Ways and Means Oversight subcommittee Chairman John Lewis (D-GA) revealed that, despite signing contracts stating otherwise, 13 of the top 23 TARP recipients owed more than $220 million in unpaid Federal taxes. Since the hearing, 50 percent of this amount has been repaid to the IRS. As outlined in the attached letter, “We are hopeful that as a result of this hearing, the Office of Financial Stability will undertake a thorough review of its tax compliance procedures and, if deemed necessary, request authorization from the companies to access their tax records for the purposes of verifying statements made in contracts."
The letter suggests additional authority be granted to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to oversee Federal Reserve activities in connection with TARP. Stating, “We would like to know whether, at this unprecedented time in history, it would be prudent to consider providing GAO with narrowly-crafted authority to oversee certain activities at the Federal Reserve in connection with TARP."
