As if the last bill passed by the House wasn’t radical enough, new legislation introduced by Barney Frank would give the Treasury the power to restrict the pay of all employees at institutions that have received a capital investment from the government. The Washington Examiner describes the plan as follows:

“the House Financial Services Committee, led by chairman Barney Frank, has approved a measure that would, in some key ways, go beyond the most draconian features of the original AIG bill. The new legislation, the “Pay for Performance Act of 2009,” would impose government controls on the pay of all employees — not just top executives — of companies that have received a capital investment from the U.S. government. It would, like the tax measure, be retroactive, changing the terms of compensation agreements already in place. And it would give Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner extraordinary power to determine the pay of thousands of employees of American companies.

The purpose of the legislation is to “prohibit unreasonable and excessive compensation and compensation not based on performance standards,” according to the bill’s language. That includes regular pay, bonuses — everything — paid to employees of companies in whom the government has a capital stake, including those that have received funds through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.”

Its unbelievable that such legislation has already passed a vote in the House Financial Services committee by a vote of 38-22. The bill is scheduled to be voted upon by the House later this week.

What are our elected officials doing in the House of Representatives? They are clearly out of control and need to be reigned in. Barney Frank seems to be the main offender in my opinion. Its a good thing most of the banks plan to give back the TARP funds anyway.

Let’s hope the House comes to its senses and rejects the latest measure to stick a pitchfork into Wall Street.

Full text of the Washington Examiner article can be found here.

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