Treasury Department

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Department of Treasury, is warning the public to be wary of continuing financial scams that attempt to solicit funds from unsuspecting victims. Some scams involve individuals misrepresenting themselves as FinCEN officials and some involve the fraudulent use of FinCEN's seal in a letter or e-mail claiming to be official correspondence. The scams often involve the enticement of a phony inheritance or sum of money and claims that FinCEN is holding or blocking the transfer of funds.

Until recently, retirement planning focused mostly on helping workers accumulate savings. Now, the Treasury Department is tackling another aspect: making sure retirees don't run out of money. The department last week proposed two regulations to make it easier for workers to get annuities through their workplace plans. With an annuity, workers can make a lump-sum payment to an insurance company and in exchange get an income stream for life. Outliving savings is a serious risk, and a fear of many retirees.

Crouching to examine the contours of a gleaming Ferrari 360 Spider convertible Monday afternoon, 21-year-old Daniel Giron couldn't help but imagine himself as owner of the luxury car, seized by the U.S. government from Byron Keith Brown, a Maryland man convicted last year of wire fraud and money laundering. After admiring the car at a vehicle auction site in Elkridge, Giron whipped out his phone, leaned in close to the cherry-red exterior and snapped a couple of pictures of his face next to the Ferrari logo.

Most of us are familiar with the food pyramid, the government's guideline for healthy eating. Now imagine a "money pyramid" for healthy finances. The Treasury Department is working on such a teaching tool right now, and is seeking public input this week on what money maxims should be included. The agency wants your opinion on what adults need to know about five key areas of finance — earning, spending, saving, borrowing and protecting against risk. The goal is to put those concepts in an easy-to-remember format that can be used by financial education programs across the country — and to help us all make more informed decisions.

Baltimore money manager T. Rowe Price Group said Monday that its global head of trading will take over for Mary J. Miller, director of the nearly $100 billion fixed-income division, who is stepping down Friday because she has been nominated for a Treasury Department job. Mike Gitlin, who has more than 16 years of experience with global capital markets, joined T. Rowe Price in 2007. Miller - nominated in October - needs U.S. Senate approval to become the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for financial markets.

Baltimore bail bondsman Milton Tillman III, 32, pleaded not guilty Friday in U.S. District Court to charges he defrauded the Treasury Department, lied on tax returns and permitted a prohibited person, his father, to participate in the insurance business through a type of bond guarantee. His father, Milton Tillman Jr., who was indicted alongside his son in February, was scheduled to be arraigned Thursday as well, but his attorney Billy Murphy was held up in New Orleans. Tillman Jr.'s arraignment on charges he defrauded Ports of America Baltimore Inc., by allegedly saying he worked more than he did, as well as the Treasury Department, by claiming he made less than he did has been rescheduled to April 2. Tillman Jr. also faces charges of filing false tax returns, wire fraud, and illegally engaging in the insurance business through 4 Aces Bail Bonds.

Baltimore bail bondsman Milton Tillman III, 32, pleaded not guilty Friday in U.S. District Court to charges he defrauded the Treasury Department, lied on tax returns and permitted a prohibited person, his father, to participate in the insurance business through a type of bond guarantee. His father, Milton Tillman Jr., who was indicted alongside his son in February, was scheduled to be arraigned this week, but his attorney Billy Murphy was held up in New Orleans. Tillman Jr.'s arraignment on charges he defrauded Ports of America Baltimore Inc., by allegedly saying he worked more than he did, as well as the Treasury Department, by claiming he made less than he did, has been rescheduled to April 2. Tillman Jr. also faces charges of filing false tax returns, wire fraud and illegally engaging in the insurance business through 4 Aces Bail Bonds.

CHICAGO - Just 4 percent of delinquent borrowers who started trial mortgage modifications under the Obama administration's housing plan have had those more affordable loan terms made permanent, the Treasury Department said Thursday. The monthly progress report on the government's Making Home Affordable modification program shows that mortgage servicers had started 759,058 trial periods with consumers nationally by the end of November. More than 697,000 of them were considered active trial modifications and 31,382 were permanent loan adjustments.

Treasury auction resumesThe Treasury Department resumed the auction of securities yesterday with the sale of 52-week and 15-day bills. The bill sales followed congressional action Monday night increasing the statutory limit on the national debt from $4.145 trillion to $4.37 trillion, through Sept. 30.Interest rates on 52-week Treasury bills, originally scheduled to be sold April 1, rose to an average discount rate of 3.24 percent -- the highest level since February.

The Treasury Department says automaker General Motors Co. and insurer Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. have repaid billions of bailout dollars. Treasury says GM repaid $1 billion of $6.7 billion in loans it received as part of a $50 billion rescue. Hartford repaid its entire $3.4 billion bailout. The money came from a $700 billion bailout that Congress passed in October 2008 amid the worst financial crisis in generations. The payments mean Treasury has been repaid $181 billion of the money it disbursed.