WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Sam Brownback on Friday introduced the SAFE Act which will require the Treasury Department to reduce the national debt and eliminate the current slush fund by directing that proceeds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program go toward a reduction in the statutory debt limit. S. 1642, the Save American Free Enterprise Act, requires Treasury to use the proceeds from loan payments to pay off a portion of the nation's debt every time it receives a payback of TARP money.

"I voted against TARP because of the enormous price tag and the program has yet to buy any toxic asset, which was how it was sold to the American public," said Brownback. "TARP has already received $80 billion dollars in bank repayments. This creates a never ending government slush fund that should be used to pay down our ever-growing national debt."

$80 billion in funds have been repaid by banks that were loaned money from the $700 billion government bailout of the financial industry known as TARP. The legislation authorizing TARP stipulated that the money received should be used to pay down the debt, but so far Secretary Geithner has yet to announce when or if he plans to do so.

Brownback continued, "The American people are demanding that we in Washington tackle the enormous problem of skyrocketing government spending and our soaring federal debt burden. Doing any less than requiring Treasury to pay taxpayers back for bailing out Wall Street would not only be irresponsible, it would invite yet more unauthorized, counter-productive economic intervention."

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