What was the name of the 2008 U.S. stock-market rescue law that created the Troubled Asset Relief Program?

The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 created the Troubled Asset Relief Program during the global stock-market crash.

President George W. Bush signed the act on 3 October 2008 after an earlier version failed in the U.S. House of Representatives. The law authorized up to $700 billion for the Treasury Department to address the financial crisis, primarily through purchases or insurance of troubled assets and later through capital injections into banks.

The legislation was designed to stabilize financial markets after mortgage losses had damaged banks and credit institutions. The Treasury ultimately used TARP in several ways, including investments in banks, support for the automotive industry, and assistance connected with the American International Group rescue.

TARP is often confused with the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Dodd–Frank became law in 2010 and established broad regulatory reforms; it did not create TARP. The stabilization act was an emergency response, whereas Dodd–Frank was a longer-term restructuring of financial regulation.