S&L; Crisis Is Regional

Regarding the savings and loan crisis:

Forty-seven of the 100 most troubled savings and loans are in Texas. Some $9 billion in government funds has been spent to rescue more than 20 other Texas S&Ls.; Many of these bankrupt firms own foreclosed property in Texas. But these assets are held off the market because of fears that distress sales would depress property values in the region, wiping out what little equity remains in the “healthy” assets.

Now President Bush, Sen. Lloyd Bentsen and Rep. Henry B. Gonzalez--all from Texas--are key players in proposals and legislation to save the “nation’s S&L; system” from collapse. The press has been bullied into trumpeting the urgency to solve this most recent “national” crisis.

But the reality is a severe regional depression in the real estate markets of a few Southwestern states. The entire nation is already paying higher interest rates to cover these losses. The public should be made aware of the facts so that the taxes and fees required to clean up this mess can be directed to the regions and states responsible for the costs and most directly benefiting from the resolution of the crisis.

TOM TOMEONI

Santa Barbara