The distribution of bailout money is wider geographically that previously believed, according to a new analysis by a nonpartisan oversight group.
A new interactive map released this week by the Sunlight Foundation, a non-profit group that focuses on improving public access to government information. According to its researchers, previous attempts to map bailout recipients erred in assigning funds based on financial institutions' corporate headquarters.
That approach, which was used by the Treasury Department in creating its own local-impact map, makes it appear that most funding under the Troubled Asset Relief Program went in significant proportion to states on the east and west coasts.
According to the Sunlight Foundation, while Treasury's conclusions were broadly true, it noted in its analysis that "using a bank's headquarters to map its reach is of questionable utility given that many financial institutions affect communities well outside of the state in which their headquarters is located."
This is particularly true for online mortgage lenders and nationwide banks. Citigroup Inc., for instance, issues loans in nearly every county in the country, even though its retail business is much more limited.
By failing to take account of national banking trends, the Sunlight Foundation says, the Treasury's Local Impact map understates TARP's impact in critical regions. Among other errors, it shows that Arizona, which has among the highest foreclosure and mortgage-delinquency rates in the country, received only $2.5 million in TARP funding, while the state of Montana received no funding at all.
Looking at the issue from the branch level, however, shows that both states did receive large amount of bailout money -- via banks that are headquartered in other states. By scrolling the cursor over the map, the user can see the number of branches in each county that benefited from the bailout.
The Sunlight Foundation created its map in cooperation with The Pew Charitable Trusts. Their report appears on Subsidyscope.com, a site that Pew's economic policy department created in December.
Using data provided by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and mortgage regulators, the map also provides the percentage of local deposits held by TARP recipients, and shows recent loan activity by those banks.
In Maricopa County, Arizona, for instance, banks that got TARP money operate 621 branches, making up 77 percent of all local branches. They hold deposits of $42.8 billion, or 82 percent of the total, and since 2007 have originated 88,105 home loans, or 42 percent.
A new interactive map released this week by the Sunlight Foundation, a non-profit group that focuses on improving public access to government information. According to its researchers, previous attempts to map bailout recipients erred in assigning funds based on financial institutions' corporate headquarters.
That approach, which was used by the Treasury Department in creating its own local-impact map, makes it appear that most funding under the Troubled Asset Relief Program went in significant proportion to states on the east and west coasts.
According to the Sunlight Foundation, while Treasury's conclusions were broadly true, it noted in its analysis that "using a bank's headquarters to map its reach is of questionable utility given that many financial institutions affect communities well outside of the state in which their headquarters is located."
This is particularly true for online mortgage lenders and nationwide banks. Citigroup Inc., for instance, issues loans in nearly every county in the country, even though its retail business is much more limited.
By failing to take account of national banking trends, the Sunlight Foundation says, the Treasury's Local Impact map understates TARP's impact in critical regions. Among other errors, it shows that Arizona, which has among the highest foreclosure and mortgage-delinquency rates in the country, received only $2.5 million in TARP funding, while the state of Montana received no funding at all.
Looking at the issue from the branch level, however, shows that both states did receive large amount of bailout money -- via banks that are headquartered in other states. By scrolling the cursor over the map, the user can see the number of branches in each county that benefited from the bailout.
The Sunlight Foundation created its map in cooperation with The Pew Charitable Trusts. Their report appears on Subsidyscope.com, a site that Pew's economic policy department created in December.
Using data provided by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and mortgage regulators, the map also provides the percentage of local deposits held by TARP recipients, and shows recent loan activity by those banks.
In Maricopa County, Arizona, for instance, banks that got TARP money operate 621 branches, making up 77 percent of all local branches. They hold deposits of $42.8 billion, or 82 percent of the total, and since 2007 have originated 88,105 home loans, or 42 percent.
published May 13, 2009, 0 Comments
Leave a comment