Nine of the top 10 bonus recipients at AIG have agreed to give back their bonuses, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said today.
“I applaud the employees who are returning the bonuses,” Cuomo said during a conference call with reporters. “I think they are being responsive to the American people.”
Out of the people who received the 20 biggest payouts, 15 have agreed to turn the money over.
So far, AIG has back $30 million in bonuses and believes it could pull in $80 million ultimately, Cuomo said.
AIG paid $165 million in bonuses, which caused an uproar across the country because taxpayers bailed out the company by pumping more than $170 billion into it.
Cuomo has put pressure on the company to disclose the names of the bonus recipients and the House last week passed a bill that would tax the bonuses at 90 percent.
Some executives have refused to turn over their bonus money, the Attorney General said.