Still Waiting on TARP Oversight...

The Treasury Department has taken steps to improve the accountability and transparency of its $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), but it still has a long way to go to convince Congress and the public that taxpayer dollars are being spent effectively and responsibly on the bailout effort, according to a new report released today by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The report covers Treasury's administration of the TARP program through January 23, 2009, during which time Treasury disbursed $293.7 billion in program funds, mostly through the Capital Purchase Program (CPP).  The GAO acknowledged that, in response to its previous report, Treasury has developed plans to conduct monthly surveys of the 20 largest recipients of CPP funds in order to monitor their lending practices.  Nevertheless, the report makes clear that “additional action is needed to better ensure that all participating institutions are accountable for their use of program funds.”

In fact, the GAO found that Treasury has yet to fully implement eight of the nine recommendations made in its previous report.  For instance, Treasury still doesn't have a structured mechanism in place to ensure that firms are complying with CPP requirements, including limitations on executive compensation and dividend and stock repurchases.  Treasury is also still struggling to articulate a clear strategic vision for the program, which is impairing its “ability to effectively communicate to Congress, the financial markets, and the public on the benefits of TARP.”  In addition, Treasury still has work to do to ensure that TARP contractors are complying with conflict of interest rules.

We applaud Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner for beginning to issue new accountability and transparency policies, such as a plan to post contracts for future completed transactions to Treasury's website within five to ten business days.  As he continues to meet with GAO investigators, Special IG Neil Barofsky, and members of the Congressional Oversight Panel, we hope that Geithner will move quickly to address some of the other glaring deficiencies in TARP oversight.

-- Michael Smallberg

Comments

[Bill Harshaw]

Note the article in today's Post on delays caused by the Paperwork Reduction Act (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/30/AR2009013003771.html). Looks as if Congress screwed up by not exempting the TARP oversight from the provisions of the Act.

[Axel]

Dear Readers, 1/30/2009
Dear POGO,

My sincere apologies for my repetitious posting of these very limited and seemingly obvious remedies for review and consideration from the seemingly endless and redundant lack of reasonable applications for resolve to this and these concerns for at least the recent past few months and where I have been consistent in my efforts to responsibly communicate replies as requested from the 'Change We Can Believe In' Obama Transition Team.

Within an explanation of my apologies and continued exasperations and frustrations is that these temporary endeavor remedies and/or temporary endeavor resolves have not been mentioned anywhere that I am aware in our main stream media or any other media or from our US Executive, Legislative or Judicial leaders and especially within the recent past several months.

Thank you and all for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Axel
Axel V. Sabersky
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Attached replies from 1/26/2009

This is a partial copy/paste blog comment reply that I was fortunate to post on a recent superb and excellent 1/26/2009 Ms. Lumpkin authored POGO Article entitled 'SIG TARP Grabs Mandate and Runs With It'.

1) Glass Stegal should immediately be reinststed,

2) With proper and forthright implementation of an Indvidual Account to increase to a 1 Million Dollar full asset 1 Dollar Full Dollar Asset Coverage of every Individual Account (REASONABLE!! Treasury, FDIC and/or 'ecetra!!') should cover all (within reason!!) Bank and if and/or as in existence every Money Market Funds without any date implementation, restriction or Fees ectera.

3) Every effort should be accomodated to adjudicate and/or adjust every so-called Mortgage and/or as may be required.

4) Along with the 'Federal Employee WPR Act' that will hopefully correct the fraud, waste, abuse and corruption in many of our world leading Industries that also a 'get real' approach will allow for the basic human needs of food, shelter, clothing and health care to be addressed and implemented to a 'get real' approach and endeavor resolve.

5) As our MSM News and presumably our US Executive and Legislative Branches of our US Government have for several weeks seemingly stated our Economy and Financials have cause for concern, I would again suggest in the interim that just 200 Billion Dollars of your Trillion Dollar allotments this last year alone could go directly to State, County and City Governments in the US to directly employee 22.2 Million Tax Paying !! Workers at 9 dollars an hour.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Axel