Client Alert
House TARP Bill Likely to Model Future Funding Programs
January 28, 2009
Nicole Ibbotson and Kevin Petrasic
On January 21, 2009, the House of Representatives voted 260-166 to pass legislation that would establish new terms and conditions for disbursing the second $350 billion portion of the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). While the legislation is being viewed as unlikely to face a Senate vote, largely because it includes numerous provisions the new Administration has already agreed to, it remains as a placeholder for the expectations of many Members of Congress regarding the use of TARP funding by the new Administration. The TARP Reform and Accountability Act of 2009, H.R. 384 (the House Bill), would amend the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA) to strengthen accountability of TARP fund recipients, increase transparency of the use of such funds, and require Treasury to follow through on making TARP funds available to entities other than large depository institutions.