Congressional Panel Says GMAC Has No Business Plan, Suggests Break Up

One idea is to move auto finance back to General Motors

WASHINGTON -- GMAC Inc. still has no business plan even after receiving a $17.2 billion investment from the government, and the Treasury Department has been lax in making sure that the bank repays taxpayers, a congressional panel said (Thursday). "The panel is deeply concerned that Treasury has not required GMAC to lay out a clear path to viability or a strategy for fully repaying taxpayers," said the Congressional Oversight Panel, which was created to oversee Treasury's spending of Troubled Asset Relief Program funds. Treasury should consider the possibility of breaking up GMAC and merging its auto-finance unit back into General Motors Co., the panel said in a statement. "We appreciate the panel's responsibility to analyze history; however, GMAC's management team is focused on the future," GMAC said in a statement. "That includes continuing to provide the highest level of service to auto dealers and consumers in support of our auto partners, returning GMAC to a high level of profitability, and repaying the U.S. Treasury."

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