BANKING / FINANCE : Ailing Thrift Still Managed to Assist Political Campaigns

During the four years before its sale in late 1988, American Savings & Loan was a shareholder-owned company under tight control by federal thrift regulators as it hemorrhaged more than $900 million in red ink.

Yet, from its Irvine corporate headquarters, the nation’s biggest thrift at the time still managed to contribute to the political campaigns of more than three dozen local and state legislators.

Of course, the total amount spent on politicians--$219,414 over four years--was but a speck to the $33-billion S&L.; It wouldn’t even pay half of the chairman’s annual salary of more than $500,000. And other thrifts or their political action committees were also funneling money to candidates.

But when a thrift is bleeding to death and federal regulators are calling the shots, pumping political war chests may not be the best use of money. William J. Popejoy, who headed the thrift at the time, was unavailable this week for comment.

Campaign records, which The Times came across recently, show that state Democrats enjoyed most of American’s largess.

David Roberti of Los Angeles, president pro tem of the state Senate, was the thrift’s favorite politician, receiving $34,500 over the four-year period. Former Sen. John Garamendi (now state insurance commissioner), whose district includes American Savings’ Stockton administrative headquarters, picked up $21,700. And Assemblyman Tom Bane (D-Tarzana) was close behind with $21,000 from the thrift.

The thrift also gave $18,000 to the California League of Savings Institutions for the trade group’s political action committee. State Controller Gray Davis, a Democrat, also collected $15,000 for his campaigns.

Farther down the list was Assemblyman Patrick J. Nolan (R-Los Angeles), who sponsored the notorious 1983 deregulation law that allowed state-chartered thrifts to put all their deposits in almost any investment they wanted. He received $6,500 over the four-year period.

American Savings was sold to the Robert M. Bass Group of Ft. Worth, Tex., in December, 1988, and split in two. American Savings Bank is the privately run thrift that holds the performing, or revenue-producing, assets of American S&L.; New West Federal Savings & Loan was set up to dispose of the old thrift’s soured loans and other bad assets for the government.