Fannie Mae plans to pay retention bonuses of at least $1 million to four key executives as part of a plan to keep hundreds of employees from leaving the government-controlled company.
Rival mortgage finance company Freddie Mac is planning similar awards, but has not yet reported on which executives will benefit.
The two companies, which together own or back more than half of the home mortgages in the country, have been hobbled by skyrocketing loan defaults. Fannie recently requested $15 billion in federal aid, while Freddie has sought a total of almost $45 billion.
Fannie Mae disclosed its “broad-based” retention program in a recent regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company was only required to disclose the amounts for the top-paid executives, who will pocket at least $470,000 on top of their base salaries.
The bonuses are more than double last year’s, which ranged from $200,000 to $260,000. Another round of bonuses ranging from $330,000 to $429,000 are planned for next February.
A company spokesman declined further comment.
Fannie Mae said regulators determined that the bonuses were needed because keeping key employees “was essential to ensure our viability through 2010, which would allow Congress, the administration and other parties involved time to determine what the form and function of the company will be in future years.”
The bonuses were authorized last year by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which seized control of Fannie and Freddie in September and ousted the companies’ former CEOs “It was critical to retain their most important asset — their employees — who are being asked to play a vital role in the nation’s economic recovery,” James Lockhart, the agency’s director, said in a statement. “As the previous senior management teams left, it would have been catastrophic to lose the next layers down and other highly experienced employees.”
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/03/18/fannie-mae-pay-bonuses-g-execs/
Ok…we get it. The government not only bails out failed, mismanaged corporations, but it’s also using our taxes to bail out it’s own failures.
There needs to be a daily fucking Tea Party right in front of the nation’s capitol every day. For all you frustrated voters out there: forget contacting these morons. They don’t care, trust me. I’ve e-mailed our lunkhead (Democrat) Ohio representatives on a number of issues and they either tapdance or never respond.
Calls for resignations will not work. They’ll simply stall until the end of their terms. The only alternatives are a tax revolt, as well as voting them out of office.
Americans have had it with the lies, fingerpointing, and absolute arrogance on the part of politicians. We’ve had it with the government abetting corporate executives who had no business being in charge in the first damned place.
Had enough?