An investigation by the Sacramento Bee newspaper revealed that Warren Buffett's holding company Berkshire Hathaway is fifth on the list of largest investors being helped by federal bailout funding.

Buffett’s holding company Berkshire Hathaway hasn’t received any TARP dollars. However, the company holds stock valued at more than $13 billion in the top recipients of TARP funds, which include Goldman Sachs, US Bancorp, American Express, and Bank of America.

These holdings constitute 30 percent of its publicly disclosed stock portfolio. They also mean Berkshire is at least twice as dependent on bailed-out banks as any other large investor, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Buffett increased his bank holdings last September, at the same time he was urging Congress to approve bailout funds.

“I am, to some extent, betting on the fact that the government will do the rational thing here and act promptly,” Buffett told CNBC after investing $5 billion in Goldman Sachs.

“If I didn’t think the government was going to act, I would not be doing anything this week.”

Berkshire shares — which are down 40 percent from last fall — have risen sharply with the financial sector stock rally in recent weeks.

“People can draw their own conclusions” about Buffett’s stake in the bailout, attorney and business ethics expert Richard Coppes told the Chronicle.

“But it shows one reason Buffett is so intensely interested in TARP.”