Estimate of Bailout Cost Falls

November 30, 2010

Estimate of Bailout Cost Falls

"The projected cost of the $700-billion financial bailout fund -- initially feared to be a huge hit to taxpayers -- continues to drop, with the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimating Monday that losses would amount to just $25 billion," the Los Angeles Times reports.

In March, the budget office estimated that the program would cost taxpayers $109 billion.

From the report: "Clearly, it was not apparent when the TARP was created two years ago that the cost would turn out to be this low. At that time, the U.S. financial system was in a precarious condition, and the transactions envisioned and ultimately undertaken through the TARP engendered substantial financial risk for the federal government."