Congressman Leonard Lance delivered the following speech before the United States House of Representatives on June 16, 2009.

I rise to address the House for one minute.

Mr. Speaker,

Last week, the U.S. Treasury Department announced the repayment of TARP funds from ten banks, totaling $68.3 billion returned to the TARP program.

The TARP repayment news is a promising sign that our beleaguered financial system is beginning to stabilize and taxpayer funds are being returned.

However, I am deeply concerned about the signals being sent from the Treasury Department and some in Congress regarding the fate of these returned funds.

While many of my colleagues and I have called for these repayments be applied to help pay down the national debt, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has indicated that the returned funds would “free up resources” for future bailout loans.

I respectfully disagree with the Secretary's position that these monies should be reused in the future. The repaid taxpayer funds should only be used to pay down the ever-growing national debt.

I call on Congress to pass H.R. 2119 – legislation which I am cosponsoring – that would require the Treasury to apply returned TARP funds to debt reduction.

Let me be clear — returned TARP funds must be designated to pay down our national debt, not used on new spending.

I yield back.