New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said the executives at American International Group who recently received 15 of the top 20 retention bonuses have “done the right thing.”

Andrew Cuomo

Cuomo announced March 23 that his office continues to investigate the status of $165 million in bonuses that numerous executives in AIG‘s Financial Products division received. His office has received a list of the executives receiving bonuses from the insurer despite the company’s fear for their safety.

At a recent Congressional hearing, AIG CEO Edward Liddy made his concerns public, reading several threatening notes sent to him and others in the company regarding the bonuses and the financial calamity the insurer’s demise has meant for the United States.

AIG has secured nearly $180 billion in federal money to save it from collapse, including and estimated $40 billion from the U.S. Treasury‘s TARP program and $37.8 billion in federal loans.

The company sparked a national outcry after it then rewarded employees in the Financial Products’ division – the unit that caused the insurer’s collapse – with contractually-bound retention bonuses of $165 million.

Cuomo said his office has been “working our way down the list,” starting with the largest bonuses. He reported that nine of the top 10 bonus recipients have agreed to give the bonuses back, and of the top 20, 15 have agreed to return the money.

The attorney general added that of the $165 million in bonuses, his office calculates a return of $50 million, noting that 47% of the bonuses, or $80 million, went to workers living in the U.S.

“I would like to say this to the individuals who have given the money back: You have done the right thing,” Cuomo said in a statement. “You have done what this country now needs and demands. We are living in a new era of corporate and individual responsibility. I thank you for setting an example for the rest of the company.”