Accountability for Utility Executives Act

Accountability for Utility Executives Act

This bill prohibits a publicly traded utility company undergoing bankruptcy proceedings from paying bonuses or any golden parachute compensation to company executives. The bill defines golden parachute compensation as compensation based on or related to the acquisition, merger, consolidation, sale, or other disposition of the assets of the company.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2844 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2844

To provide that certain executives of publicly traded utility companies 
 may not receive bonuses or severance payments, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 13, 2019

 Mr. Schumer (for Ms. Harris) introduced the following bill; which was 
          read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide that certain executives of publicly traded utility companies 
 may not receive bonuses or severance payments, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Accountability for Utility 
Executives Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS ON CERTAIN BONUSES AND SEVERANCE PAYMENTS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``bankruptcy proceedings'' means a case 
        commenced under title 11, United States Code;
            (2) the term ``C-suite executive'' means, with respect to a 
        covered company--
                    (A) the chief executive officer of the covered 
                company;
                    (B) the chief financial officer of the covered 
                company;
                    (C) the chief operating officer of the covered 
                company;
                    (D) the chief information officer of the covered 
                company; and
                    (E) the equivalent of an official described in any 
                of subparagraphs (A) through (D);
            (3) the term ``covered company'' means an issuer--
                    (A) that--
                            (i) is a debtor in bankruptcy proceedings; 
                        and
                            (ii)(I) is an owner or operator of--
                                    (aa) a public water system; or
                                    (bb) a treatment works; or
                            (II) is an electric utility; and
                    (B) the securities of which are traded on a 
                national securities exchange;
            (4) the term ``electric utility'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 3 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 796);
            (5) the terms ``exchange'', ``issuer'', and ``security'' 
        have the meanings given the terms in section 3(a) of the 
        Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a));
            (6) the term ``golden parachute compensation'' means, with 
        respect to a covered company, any type of compensation (whether 
        present, deferred, or contingent) that is based on or otherwise 
        relates to the acquisition, merger, consolidation, sale, or 
        other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of 
        the covered company;
            (7) the term ``national securities exchange'' means an 
        exchange that is registered under section 6 of the Securities 
        Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78f);
            (8) the term ``public water system'' has the meaning given 
        the term in section 1401 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 
        U.S.C. 300f); and
            (9) the term ``treatment works'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 212 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
        (33 U.S.C. 1292).
    (b) Prohibition.--
            (1) In general.--A covered company may not--
                    (A) pay a bonus to a C-suite executive of the 
                covered company; or
                    (B) otherwise provide an individual described in 
                subparagraph (A) with any golden parachute 
                compensation.
            (2) Taxation.--If a covered company pays a bonus or 
        otherwise provides compensation in violation of paragraph (1), 
        that bonus or compensation, as applicable, shall be treated for 
        purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as if it were an 
        excess parachute payment under section 280G of such Code.
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