WASHINGTON (February 3, 2010)—U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Wednesday Congress can recoup "outrageous" bonuses for AIG employees through a new bank fee included in President Barack Obama's proposed budget.

American International Group Inc. is set to pay out about $100 million in a fresh round of bonuses to employees.

Geithner called the bonuses, which were negotiated years ago, an "outrageous failure of policy."

Geithner Wednesday asked the House Ways and Means Committee to support the new fee as a way of getting the money back.

The fee, which would be assessed on certain liabilities of the largest firms in the financial sector, would raise about $90 billion over the next decade.