Four of every five tax dollars that Utahns have paid toward the federal savings and loan bailout have gone to help thrifts in other states, according to a new study.
The Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition, a regional caucus of House members, released a report titled "Stuck With The Tab Part 2," claiming its area is unfairly saddled with massive S&L losses coming mainly from Texas and California.Meanwhile, the coalition said the federal government overlooks expensive education and infrastructure needs in its region.
The report also said Utah is among the states whose taxpayers spend much more on the bailout than their state receives back to help local S&Ls.
It said that from 1986 through 1989, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board and the Resolution Trust Corp. reported spending $46 million in Utah to close, merge or stabilize insolvent thrifts.
That is about 1/1,000th of the total spent nationwide. But Utahns pay about 1/200th of the nation's total taxes. So the report suggests Utah is exporting four of every five tax dollars paid there for the S&L bailout to solve problems elsewhere.
In comparison, the federal government spent $29.6 billion to bail out S&Ls in Texas - about 59 percent of the total spent nationwide. Texas pays about 6.8 percent of the nation's taxes.
And in California, the federal government spent $6.8 billion to bail out S&Ls - about 13.5 percent of the national total. California pays 12.6 percent of the nation's tax burden.
The report said, "The people of the Northeast-Midwest region are generous. They would no doubt be willing to pitch in and help the recent victims of flooding in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas.
"However, they wonder why their hard-earned tax dollars should be used to clean up a disaster that was not an act of God, but the result of fraud and irresponsibility on a monumental scale in the Southwest."
The report said the South has received 73.2 percent of the money spent on the bailout so far, but the region only pays 28.3 percent of the nation's taxes.
The Northeast-Midwest region has received 10.3 percent of the money spent on the bailout but pays 46.9 percent of the nation's taxes.
The West, if California is excluded, has received 3 percent of the money spent on the S&L bailout. It pays 12.6 of the nation's taxes.
Treasury Secretary Nicholas F. Brady told Congress last month that the final cost of the S&L bailout nationwide could reach $300 billion.