Bush Is Asked to Do More on S&L; Fraud : Thrifts: Democrats want to triple the money needed to prosecute offenders. They say there is a backlog of thousands of potential cases.

A huge group of House Democrats has asked President Bush to play a more active role in addressing the worsening savings and loan crisis by requesting additional funds from Congress to investigate and prosecute S&L; fraud.

More than 200 Democrats, led by Rep. Charles E. Schumer of New York, sent a letter Friday to Bush saying the $50 million appropriated to the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute S&L; fraud isn’t enough to handle a backlog of thousands of potential criminal cases.

An additional $100 million is needed, said the Democrats, some of whom last week accused the Justice Department of dragging its feet on prosecuting thrift fraud.

Sean Young, a White House spokesman, said over the weekend that Bush had not received the letter and would have no immediate comment on it.

Bush said at a news conference Thursday that the savings and loan crisis “causes me great concern” and that policy makers’ first priority is protecting depositors against losses.

The Administration last week dramatically raised its estimates of how much new borrowing the government needs to finance the clean up of the savings and loan mess. Instead of the $50 billion forecast a year ago, Treasury Secretary Nicholas F. Brady said between $90 billion and $130 is needed now.

Including interest on the money borrowed, the cost to taxpayers of covering S&L; losses is expected to exceed $325 billion over the next 30 years.

Brady unveiled the new estimate the same day that Bush’s son, Neil, was testifying before the House Banking Committee on the $1-billion collapse of Silverado Banking, Savings & Loan Assn. Neil Bush was a director of the failed Denver thrift.

The panel’s chairman, Rep. Henry B. Gonzalez, (D-Texas), plans to ask Atty. Gen. Dick Thornburgh to testify before the committee.

Democrats on the House committee, including Schumer, have criticized the Justice Department for earmarking only $50 million to investigate S&L; fraud, instead of the $75 million that Congress last year authorized for the task as part of the bailout legislation.

“The American people are being asked to foot the bill of a bailout that may well exceed several hundred billion dollars,” the House Democrats wrote Bush. “They demand in return that the criminals who looted the thrift industry be brought to justice.”

They asked Bush to reevaluate the number of personnel needed to vigorously investigate and prosecute alleged fraud and embezzlement and seek increased appropriations from Congress to meet those needs.

“At this time, we believe that the Department of Justice requires close to $100 million in additional funds to meet these personnel needs,” their letter said.

Justice Department officials have said they already are spending nearly that amount. In addition to the $50 million from the bailout legislation, department officials say they are spending a roughly equivalent amount from funds previously appropriated to investigate S&L; fraud.