House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank made the following statement in reaction to the remarks by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner introducing the Financial Stability Plan:

“Treasury Secretary Geithner made a number of improvements to the overall TARP program that will increase accountability and transparency of this taxpayer-funded rescue of America’s financial institutions.  He should be commended for doing so.  I look forward to working with Secretary Geithner and his team on the details of the Financial Stability Plan to produce for the American people a program that is more open, works better, produces more lending and reduces foreclosures.  Today, the Secretary acted in much the same way as the TARP Reform and Accountability Act that passed the House in January.  While the Secretary’s speech moves in the right direction on all fronts, some specifics remain to be detailed.  I do have two particular concerns.

“First, I’m concerned that $50 billion to reduce foreclosures understates the amount that we will need, and we need some assurance that, assuming this works as we hope it will, there will be more money available.  Secondly, the Secretary said the administration would present details of their foreclosure reduction plan in a few weeks, which is too much time.  In the meantime and while we wait for President Obama’s plan, I call on institutions that hold or service mortgages to delay and stop any foreclosure proceedings.  I have said in the past that I have been skeptical of the question of a moratorium in general because it wasn’t clear where that would lead us, but in this situation where the Obama Administration will have a specific plan shortly, a moratorium is clearly called for.”