Compensation Practices of Government Corporations

This executive order establishes presidential principles and oversight procedures for compensation practices at government corporations. It requires OMB review of bonuses exceeding standard federal limits, mandates reporting on senior executive compensation, and requires public dissemination of that information for covered mixed-ownership and wholly owned government corporations.

Federal Register Open PDF 60 FR 52829

Impact dates

Date TBD
Corporations to provide senior executive compensation information per OMB instructions (Section 3(a))
Date TBD
Corporations to submit bonus information per OMB instructions (Section 2(a))
Date TBD
OMB to issue instructions on bonus information submissions (Section 2(b))
Date TBD
OMB to issue instructions on senior executive compensation reporting (Section 3(c))

Key directives

Government corporations shall not pay bonuses exceeding those authorized by 5 U.S.C. §§ 4501-4507 except as specifically provided by law
Corporations must submit bonus information to OMB Director before approving bonuses exceeding 5 U.S.C. § 4502 limits and must refrain from approval until OMB review
OMB Director shall issue instructions on timing, content, and form of bonus information submissions
Corporations must provide senior executive compensation information including compensation plans, base salary levels, annual bonuses, other compensation, and supporting information
OMB shall review information in consultation with Department of Labor considering statutory requirements, corporate mission, federal management standards, and private sector equivalents
Corporations must publicly disseminate information submitted under Section 3
Order applies to all mixed-ownership and wholly owned corporations under 31 U.S.C. § 9101(2)-(3)
Section 2 bonus review applies only to wholly owned corporations lacking specific statutory authority for excess bonuses

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

OMB instructed to issue reporting instructions
corporations must refrain from approving excess bonuses pending OMB review

Near term (90d)

corporations to submit compensation information per OMB instructions
OMB to review submitted information in consultation with Labor Department

Long term

ongoing public dissemination of senior executive compensation information
continued OMB oversight of bonus approvals

Risks & tensions

No fixed deadlines specified; all timing delegated to OMB Director discretion, creating implementation uncertainty
Section 8 explicitly denies enforceable rights, limiting recourse if corporations fail to comply
Potential tension between attracting private-sector talent with competitive compensation and adhering to federal pay caps
Public dissemination requirement (Section 5) may create disclosure tensions for corporations with commercial competitors
Mixed-ownership corporations exempt from bonus review (Section 2) despite being covered by reporting requirements, creating asymmetric accountability