Automaker General Motors proposed an $11.1 million compensation package for its Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson, an increase of $2.1 million from his pay in 2012, according to a report by the Detroit Free Press, citing documents obtained Monday, prompting GM to deny the claim and label it an political maneuver by the person who leaked the records.
The news come a day before a U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to look into whether excessive executive pay is going on at companies aided by the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the report stated.
General Motors received $49.5 billion in TARP assistance to keep the company alive in 2008 and 2009. The government must approve executive pay at GM as a condition of the TARP bailout. It is possible that Akerson's pay package will be denied or reduced.
In 2012 and 2011 Akerson's pay was limited to $9 million, a sum of $1.7 million in cash salary and $7.3 million in stock.
General Motors is denying the reports of an increase in Akerson's compensation.
"Reports that General Motors has requested an increase in Dan Akerson's 2013 compensation are false. In fact, Dan specifically asked to keep his compensation at the same level for 2013 as it was in 2012 and 2011. That amount of $9 million is what the company submitted to the Office of the Special Master for TARP Executive Compensation," GM said in a statement, according to InAutoNews.
The Free Press followed up its original article after GM's denial surfaced and cited the GM statement, which stated that the documents were leaked for political gain ahead of the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing set for Wednesday.
"Unfortunately, someone who obviously did not understand the compensation request leaked the information in a way that misrepresented the truth in order to score political points on the eve of a congressional hearing," said the GM statement, according to The Free Press.
A GM official familiar with the matter said the confusion probably arose from Akerson's 2012 pay, which amounted to $11.1 million instead of $9 million primarily because Akerson received restricted stock units earned in 2011, the follow-up report stated.
Akerson's pay is low compared to his CEO peers. Ford CEO Alan Mulally took in $29.5 million in 2012; Chrysler, Fiat and Fiat Industrial CEO Sergio Marchionne received $22.2 million, the Free Press reported.
The Treasury Department has said it wants to ensure taxpayers are not funding outrageous salaries. The government still owns more than 300 million shares of GM after selling 200 million shares back to GM last month.
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