Today, U.S. Representative Ed Royce (R-Calif.) released the following statement in reaction to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mel Watt directing Freddie Mac to submit a proposed executive compensation for the position of Chief Executive Officer that may be as high as the 25th percentile of the market, or approximately $7.26 million a year:

“At a time when American families are still struggling to find their footing financially, it is absolutely unconscionable that regulators would allow the taxpayer-bailed out Freddie Mac to pay its CEO over $7 million dollars a year. Just last week a stress test of the GSEs showed the possibility of a future taxpayer bailout to the tune of $150 billion, yet FHFA appears to be pursuing the pre-crisis model of private gains and public losses. We can't simply put the blinders on and say the GSEs are just like other companies. We need to move towards a model that allows the private sector to compete on a level-playing field, not one where Fannie and Freddie act like the private corporations with taxpayers on the hook for losses. In the interim, I will be introducing legislation to block this potential hike in CEO pay.”

Rep. Royce is a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee with membership on both the Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises Subcommittee and the Housing and Insurance Subcommittee.