Democrats on Tuesday criticized the multimillion-dollar pay packages awarded to the former chief executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at a time when taxpayers could foot a massive bill for the companies’ bailout.

In a joint letter to Fannie and Freddie’s regulator, Senators Charles Schumer of New York and Jack Reed of Rhode Island said the combined pay and bonus packages of about $24 million should be revised.

“We find it way out of line,” they said in the letter, saying the severance pay for former Fannie Mae CEO Daniel Mudd and former Freddie Mac CEO Richard Syron should be questioned especially if any financial losses could have been caused by errors in management.

The U.S. government takeover came as worries heightened over shrinking capital at the congressionally chartered companies, which had combined losses of nearly $14 billion in the last four quarters.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has said the final price tag for taxpayers cannot be estimated until the extent of the declines in the mortgage market is fully known.