valenciastudent
Member
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2007
- Messages
- 32
A Concerned Citizen’s Bailout Plan, Putting Taxpayers First
A Concerned Citizen’s Bailout Plan, Putting Taxpayers First
As a concerned, tax paying citizen, I believe we should have a voice in the upcoming distribution of over 700 billion of our precious resources (35% of all the tax dollars collected in 2006). I am not a banker, I don’t have a degree in economics, but I am a concerned citizen that believes the bailout should contain the following common sense provisions to protect the taxpayers of this great nation. The plan should be completely optional for impoverished Wall Street companies, provided they agree to the conditions set forth.
I believe this plan balances the needs of both struggling citizens, as well as prevents the oncoming perceived collapse of our markets.
Transparency
1. Any firm agreeing to take the taxpayers bailout money should agree to post their accounting records online in a “Google” searchable type database. I’m not talking about the prospectus they release to stockholders, I’m talking about the real accounting records that account for every dollar spent. If they want the taxpayer’s money, they should show how they got into this mess in the first place. This would be the first step towards preventing it happening again in the future.
Reimbursement
2. Every dollar borrowed must be paid back to the government in a reasonable amount of time, with interest, with a stipulation that the tax payers get paid back before the shareholders receive dividends.
3. Some percentage of matching dollars (perhaps the best estimated interest to be paid back?) needs to be provided to struggling homeowners AND renters. I am not a proponent of socialism, however the decisions of many of these firms (to be confirmed by their records to be posted online) has contributed directly to many of our woes right now. They want to pocket the money when times are good, but have the government give them a free handout when times are bad? Also, it’s not just homeowners that are hurting, renters are too, and it’s time we stop treating them like second class citizens.
Accountability
4. If a firm decides to borrow these taxpayer backed dollars, management must agree to have their salary downgraded to that of the average employee within their workforce. No golden parachute, no fancy bonus loopholes. This requirement will be lifted once the taxpayers are paid back, that will be their incentive.
5. Congress needs to take a long hard look at how this mess was started, and how to prevent it in the future. If a company is “too big to fail”, we need to label them as such and subject them to increased public scrutiny.
A Concerned Citizen’s Bailout Plan, Putting Taxpayers First
As a concerned, tax paying citizen, I believe we should have a voice in the upcoming distribution of over 700 billion of our precious resources (35% of all the tax dollars collected in 2006). I am not a banker, I don’t have a degree in economics, but I am a concerned citizen that believes the bailout should contain the following common sense provisions to protect the taxpayers of this great nation. The plan should be completely optional for impoverished Wall Street companies, provided they agree to the conditions set forth.
I believe this plan balances the needs of both struggling citizens, as well as prevents the oncoming perceived collapse of our markets.
Transparency
1. Any firm agreeing to take the taxpayers bailout money should agree to post their accounting records online in a “Google” searchable type database. I’m not talking about the prospectus they release to stockholders, I’m talking about the real accounting records that account for every dollar spent. If they want the taxpayer’s money, they should show how they got into this mess in the first place. This would be the first step towards preventing it happening again in the future.
Reimbursement
2. Every dollar borrowed must be paid back to the government in a reasonable amount of time, with interest, with a stipulation that the tax payers get paid back before the shareholders receive dividends.
3. Some percentage of matching dollars (perhaps the best estimated interest to be paid back?) needs to be provided to struggling homeowners AND renters. I am not a proponent of socialism, however the decisions of many of these firms (to be confirmed by their records to be posted online) has contributed directly to many of our woes right now. They want to pocket the money when times are good, but have the government give them a free handout when times are bad? Also, it’s not just homeowners that are hurting, renters are too, and it’s time we stop treating them like second class citizens.
Accountability
4. If a firm decides to borrow these taxpayer backed dollars, management must agree to have their salary downgraded to that of the average employee within their workforce. No golden parachute, no fancy bonus loopholes. This requirement will be lifted once the taxpayers are paid back, that will be their incentive.
5. Congress needs to take a long hard look at how this mess was started, and how to prevent it in the future. If a company is “too big to fail”, we need to label them as such and subject them to increased public scrutiny.
