[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 21, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E112-E113]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TARP REFORM AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. MAZIE K. HIRONO

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 15, 2009

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 384) to 
     reform the Troubled Assets Relief Program of the Secretary of 
     the Treasury and ensure accountability under such Program, 
     and for other purposes:

  Ms. HIRONO. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of H.R. 384, the Troubled 
Assets Relief Program, TARP, Reform and Accountability Act.
  Since this capital purchase program, TARP, was implemented, billions 
of dollars in taxpayer money have been disbursed to institutions with 
little to no accountability or oversight over these funds. A 
congressional oversight panel for TARP funding recently concluded that 
the Treasury Department essentially does not know how TARP fund 
recipients are utilizing these funds, and a report released last month 
by the U.S. Government Accountability Office urged TARP administrators 
to improve the program's internal controls to better monitor how the 
funds are being spent.
  H.R. 384 amends the TARP provisions of the Emergency Economic 
Stabilization Act of 2008 to strengthen accountability, close 
loopholes, and increase transparency of the administration of this 
program. This bill requires any existing or future institution that 
receives TARP funding to provide quarterly public reporting on its use 
of the funding and stipulates that the Treasury Department administer a 
public database that includes the reporting, data collection, and 
analysis of use of TARP funds.
  Last week the House voted unanimously to require our committees to 
hold periodic hearings on waste, fraud, and abuse in Government 
programs. As a cosponsor of this bill, H. Res. 40, I believe that 
Congress has an obligation to restore accountability and oversight

[[Page E113]]

to government. H.R. 384, the TARP Reform and Accountability Act, is 
also critical to restoring the American people's faith in our 
Government and takes us one step closer to getting our country back on 
track.
  Importantly, H.R. 384 requires that a certain amount of TARP funding 
be committed to foreclosure mitigation and stipulates that the Treasury 
Secretary develop a comprehensive plan to prevent and mitigate 
foreclosures on residential mortgages. This legislation also 
establishes a program to stimulate demand for home purchases and clear 
inventory of properties so that qualified home buyers can purchase 
homes at affordable mortgage rates. We cannot move quickly enough to 
provide assistance to homeowners across the country.
  I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 384.

                          ____________________