May 28, 2011
Elizabeth Murphy
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
Dear Murphy,
As I neared retirement age, I looked forward to rewarding my life of public service by building relationships with grandchildren, ready to give to, and celebrate with the family I love. I took pride in my career as an awarded and beloved teacher in the city I served. Then came economic ruin brought about by a crippling disease in addition to the robbery of my retirement and recently imposed austerity measures preventing any disability support for my survival. My questions are
these: How can you justify your participation in the ridiculous rewards given to wealthy speculators who use others' money and who produce nothing of tangible, human benefit? How can you cast me aside after a lifetime of service while venerating and rewarding those with callous disregard for our common human needs?
America paid a terrible economic price because of irresponsible risk-taking by Wall Street executives. Those executives took those risks because they knew that they could walk away with billions of dollars in bonuses and stock options and never pay for the long-term consequences of their actions. We need tough rules so that Wall Street pay packages don't encourage short-term risk taking.
Your rules should require at least a five year deferral period for executive bonuses at big banks, ban executive hedging of their pay packages, and require specific details from banks on precisely how they ensure that executives will share in the long-run risks created by their decisions. It should apply to the full range of important financial institutions, and draw in all the key executives at those companies.
Once this rule is passed, only you will know the details of its enforcement. But it's important for the public to know the progress you are making on this vital issue. You should report back to the public annually with a detailed report on progress in creating accountability for Wall Street pay.
Referencing Docket No.'s:
OTS: RIN 155-AC49
OCC: RIN 1557-AD39
Fed: RIN 7100-AD69
SEC: RIN 3235-AL06
FHFA: RIN 2590-AA42
FDIC: RIN 3064-AD56
Sincerely,
Ms. Jamie Koroch