Congressman Tom Price (R-GA) issued the following statement in support of the Accurate Accounting of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Act, introduced yesterday by Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ) and other House Republicans.

“The continuing bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has been a disaster for taxpayers,” said Congressman Price. “CBO estimates that the cost of this bailout will reach nearly $400 billion by 2020, but it could in fact be much greater. Since the Obama administration gave the Fannie and Freddie bailout infinite room to grow last December, taxpayers are on the hook for every last dime of their combined $1.6 trillion in debt. Unfortunately, the White House has neglected to account for the cost of this bailout in its budget proposal.

“Consistent and accurate accounting is as necessary as spending restraint if we are to curtail America’s exploding national debt. While this nauseating situation is a direct result of irresponsible government policies, it is even more irresponsible to ignore the consequences of this explicit taxpayer backing of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They are now just as much a taxpayer liability as a U.S. Treasury bond.

“These two entities are owned and capitalized by taxpayers and run by the federal government, so their meager assets and enormous liabilities must now be included in the federal budget. If Democrats can't stomach the cold truth about their costs, the only responsible alternative is to place Fannie and Freddie into receivership. It’s past time the federal government acknowledged the true burden of this bailout and finally took the proper steps to wind these institutions down.”