BAILOUT AGENCY PROVIDED CUSHY PENSION

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, January 2, 1993                   TAG: 9301020082
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO   
SOURCE: The Washington Post
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
BAILOUT AGENCY PROVIDED CUSHY PENSION
Under a provision tucked into the last funding bill for the Resolution Trust Corp., David C. Cooke, head of the government agency, was able to retire June 30 at age 46 with a hefty nest egg - a lifetime pension valued at $1 million.
Cooke, it seems, left just in time. Two other top officials still at the thrift cleanup agency, one 50 and the other 49, were eligible for similar golden parachutes, but Congress quietly repealed the legislation three months ago.
Cooke's June 30 retirement after 24 years of government service came before the measure could affect his yearly pension of $55,000, which will be adjusted annually to keep pace with inflation.
Normally, federal workers with less than 30 years of service cannot retire before age 55 without deductions from their pensions and they cannot begin collecting the money until they reach age 62.
The generous pension arrangements were intended to allow Albert V. Casey, appointed by President Bush late last year to head the RTC, to bring in his own management team. The RTC wanted to use the retirement packages as a way to ease the departure of its top three officials from government careers.
There was no public opposition when Congress approved the pension language in December 1991.
"The feeling is these guys did a good job in a tough situation and Congress decided to reward them," said Steve Seelig, chief financial officer of the FDIC, which will pay the pensions for RTC employees.
But now that the cost of Cooke's pension has been computed by the Office of Personnel Management, no one is eager to take credit for it.
"That was all Seidman - Bill put that in the legislation," said Casey, referring to former FDIC chairman L. William Seidman, who also oversaw RTC operations until he left office a year ago and Casey's post was created.
"What a guy," Seidman said when told of Casey's comments. "He called me personally to ask me to get it done, but he got it done without me." Seidman said he offered to lobby for the pensions, but "my services were said to be unnecessary."

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB