Alphabet Soup

February 26, 2009

by Anna Lafferre

by Anna Lafferre

If there is one thing the federal government likes, it’s acronyms. GPRA, NAFTA, DOJ, WPA – it would be pretty easy for federal employees to carry on entire conversations using only acronyms.

Recently there have been two acronyms on the tip of everyone’s tongue: TARP and ARRA. TARP, the Troubled Assets Relief Program, was set up to allow the federal government to purchase assets and equity from financial institutions in order to strengthen the financial sector. ARRA, or the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is the $787 billion economic stimulus bill designed to create jobs, restore economic growth and strengthen America’s middle class. The government believes that together, TARP and ARRA will restore America’s economic stability and viability.

There is a great deal of money being devoted to these issues, and President Barack Obama has pledged an unprecedented amount of accountability and transparency to taxpayers. He created Recovery.gov so citizens could track the outcomes of ARRA. (Discussed in last week’s column.) According to the act that authorized TARP, another of our favorite acronyms – GAO – is required to report at least every 60 days on findings resulting from their oversight of the status of actions taken under the program. This week, the GAO released their most recent report, “Troubled Assets Relief Program: Status of Efforts to Address Transparency and Accountability Issues.”

The GAO report summarized the recent actions taken by the Treasury Department (which oversees TARP), including the distribution of about $300 billion in funds as of February 19; the creation of the Financial Stability Plan, which outlines a set of measures to address the financial crisis and restore confidence in the financial and housing markets; and a Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan to mitigate foreclosures and preserve homeownership. The GAO congratulated the Treasury Department for taking measures to implement the nine recommendations they made in their first report, however, the GAO also suggested nine areas which warrant the Department’s “ongoing attention.”

The GAO’s next report on TARP is due to Congress March 31. The complete February report can be read here: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09417t.pdf