U.S. Representative Judy Biggert introduced new legislation Thursday designed to ramp up congressional oversight of the government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and disclose the intricacies of the two companies’ businesses to taxpayers.

In the midst of the industry’s housing crisis and the nation’s financial meltdown, taxpayers were forced to take on the costs and risks associated with the GSEs, including an estimated outlay of $291 billion last year alone, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Biggert, the ranking GOP member of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, said she introduced the bill to improve transparency and accountability within the GSEs.

“These institutions have over eight trillion dollars in outstanding securities – about half the nation’s mortgages,” said Biggert. “It is inconceivable that officials managing these liabilities would be allowed to do so without proper transparency, independent oversight, and thorough reporting to Congress and the American people.”

Biggert says Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac played a central role in the housing collapse, and continue to function only because of federal support. She said, “Taxpayers deserve to know where their dollars are going, what risks they are being exposed to, and how these institutions are being managed or mismanaged.”

The Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Accountability and Transparency for Taxpayers Act of 2010 (FFATT Act), or H.R. 4581, would require the GSE inspector general or another supervisor to submit regular reports to Congress outlining taxpayer liabilities, investment decisions, and management details of Fannie and Freddie.

“The taxpayers now own 80 percent of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac after all the bailouts, and the tab continues to grow,” said Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas), deputy ranking member of the Financial Services Committee and a co-sponsor of the bill. “The FFATT Act is a step in the right direction and will provide the taxpayers and Congress with more information about the status and actions of Fannie and Freddie.”

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No Exit in Sight for U.S. As Fannie, Freddie Flail

MCLEAN, Va.—When Charles E. Haldeman Jr. became Freddie Mac's chief executive officer in August, the ailing housing-finance giant had already consumed $51 billion of government money to stay afloat. It's likely to need even more.

Freddie's federal overseers nevertheless have instructed Mr. Haldeman to focus on something that isn't likely to make the bleak balance sheet look any better: carrying out the Obama administration plan to allow defaulted borrowers to hang onto their homes.

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Former Fannie CEO Daniel Mudd testifying in 2008, says the U.S. is running Fannie and Freddie 'not as a business.'

On a recent afternoon, employees at Freddie's headquarters here peppered Mr. Haldeman with concerns about the company's future. He responded that they were "fortunate" to have such a clear mission—the government's foreclosure-prevention drive. "We're doing what's best for the country," he told them.

Freddie and its larger rival, Fannie Mae, were among the first big financial institutions to receive massive federal bailouts after the financial crisis hit in 2008. Government officials have been racing to fix bailed-out car makers and banks and are pushing to reshape the financial-services industry. But Fannie and Freddie remain troubled wards of the state, with no blueprints for the future and no clear exit strategy for the government. CONTINUE