WASHINGTON (AP) -- A watchdog says the U.S. Treasury Department disregarded its own guidelines and allowed large pay increases for executives at three firms that had received taxpayer-funded bailouts during the financial crisis.
The Special Inspector General for Troubled Asset Relief Program says Treasury approved 18 raises for executives at American International Group (AIG -0.04%), General Motors (GM 4.37%), and Ally Financial (NASDAQOTH: ALFI). Of those requests, 14 were for $100,000 or more. One raise, for the CEO of a division at AIG, was for $1 million.
The three firms received a combined nearly $250 billion from the bailout fund. Only AIG has fully repaid its $182 billion bailout.
The report says Treasury approved raises that exceeded pay limits and in some cases failed to link compensation to performance.
