Administration seeks ways to tame corporate pay

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Talking tough but stepping gently, the Obama administration rejected direct intervention in corporate pay decisions Wednesday even as officials argued that excessive compensation in the private sector contributed to the nation's financial crisis. Instead, the administration plans to seek legislation that would try to tame compensation at publicly traded companies through shareholder pressure and less management influence on pay decisions.

At the same time, the administration drew a sharp line between the overall corporate world and those institutions that have tapped the government's $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program.

The administration issued new regulations Wednesday that set pay limits on companies that receive TARP assistance, with the toughest restrictions aimed at seven recipients of "exceptional assistance." Those firms are Citigroup Inc., Bank of America corp, General Motors Corp, Chrysler, American International Group Inc., GMAC LLC and Chrysler Financial.

The regulations limit top executives of companies that receive TARP funds to bonuses of no more than one-third of their annual salaries.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EXECUTIVE_PAY?SITE=AZMES&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

---

One-third of their annual salary?! This is horrible! Instead of living on billions, they'll be forced to live on ... millions!

that those issues should take precedence; or that's just the state that the country is in right now?

I'm not trying to be snarky. I'm just not understanding your point.

If they want to pay exorbitant salaries to execs? no problem. We can set the minimu wage to be some fraction of the average executive compensation in the US.

75-90% tax on any and all income over $5,000,000. Then use the dough for single payer health care.