Golden Parachutes

The Federal Housing Finance Agency — the new agency that supervises Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks — has adopted an interim rule that effectively bars the persons who ran Fannie and Freddie when they went into conservatorship from collecting big bonuses as a result of their departures from office.

Regional Disaster Planning

The Office of Thrift Supervision released a brochure that describes the benefits for members of the financial services industry of joining a regional coalition to prepare for recovery after a disaster. The brochure, Regional Coalitions: Public-Private Partnerships for the Financial Services Sector, was developed jointly and issued by the Financial and Banking Information Infrastructure Committee and the Financial Services Sector Coordinating Council for Critical Infrastructure Protection and Homeland Security.

Housing Protest

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) arranged for Capitol Police officers to arrest 15 protestors who occupied his office. Those arrested were among 52 detained at various points as they demonstrated for money to fund housing vouchers for low-income disabled persons trying to find homes outside the nursing facilities where they now live. Congress authorized the vouchers, but failed to fund the program.