Congresswoman Hirono Votes in Favor of Bonus Recoupment Tax Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C.—“Like most Americans, I am outraged over the enormous bonuses given by AIG. I refuse to stand by while executives in the very unit of AIG that was responsible for many of the bad decisions that led to this crisis received $165 million in ‘retention’ bonuses,” said Hirono. “This past Tuesday, I joined with 95 of my colleagues in sending a letter to Treasury Secretary Geithner expressing outrage that these bonuses were being paid. At the same time, I signed onto several bills that propose to tax up to 100 percent of these absurd bonuses.”
Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) today voted in favor of a bill (H.R. 1586) that would impose a new 90 percent tax on bonuses received by individuals from companies that have received over $5 billion in federal assistance under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). The tax would only apply to bonuses received by taxpayers with an adjusted gross income of more than $250,000. This tax would apply to retention payments, incentive payments, or other bonuses from these companies that were received after December 31, 2008. H.R. 1586 passed the House overwhelmingly (328 yeas to 93 nays).
“We cannot stand by and let those who helped get us into this worldwide economic crisis receive these ridiculously large bonuses at the same time American workers are losing their jobs and their retirement savings,” said Hirono. “I am hopeful that the Senate will pass this legislation so that it can be enacted swiftly.”
END
###
