On the recordJanuary 12, 2010
I have introduced H.R. 4414, the Responsible Bankers Act of 2010. Now, many of you know I voted against both pieces of TARP legislation. It is time that America got their money back and imposed a 75 percent tax on the bonuses that bankers are planning to pay themselves using windfall profits earned from massive taxpayer support of the financial services industry. The Responsible Bankers Act will not penalize banks for making a profit but, rather, will tax the bonus pools that are set aside. As I pointed out a month ago, bankers are preparing to pay themselves record bonuses, rather than lending and investing in American prosperity. They should use their profits, and they could use their profits, to do many things to improve the prospects of the American economy, like strengthen their capital base, reduce fees charged to customers, or increase lending to small and medium-sized companies. Well, they are not doing that. They are hoarding it. They are using the money to try to take over other banks. H.R. 4414 draws on the movement that is happening right now in the U.K. and around the world, where people are waking up that if banks are not there to help with the economy of the Nation, then they should have to pay a serious tax on their bonuses.
