Frank Seeks TARP Funds for Foreclosures

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank believes that more of the TARP funds should be going to fight the ever-rising tide of foreclosures:

The federal government should devote at least $50 billion of the remaining financial-rescue funds toward a plan to prevent foreclosures, said House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank Friday.

Wrapping up a week of efforts by legislators and businesses to stake claims on the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the proposed stimulus package, Mr. Frank said he plans to lay out a series of restrictions on the remaining $350 billion in TARP in a bill the House could vote on as soon as next week.
eanwhile, an industry coalition is lobbying for a tax break that would allow companies to renegotiate troubled debt without incurring corporate income taxes, a potential windfall for many companies, including private-equity firms.

Mr. Frank said his plan would prevent banks from using government money to buy healthy banks and impose tougher executive-compensation restrictions for new recipients of TARP funds. He is also proposing a permanent increase in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s insurance limit on deposit accounts to $250,000.