美總統奧巴馬近日宣布，對于接受政府援助的企業，其高層主管年薪最高不得超過50萬美元。奧巴馬在接受CNN采訪時表示，“人們會認為這是一項合理的提議，并且會承擔起責任，這也是我們在總體上恢復金融體系的可行方法。” 此項新規則的出臺，主要基于人們對接受援助的機構使用納稅人救助資金的方式表現的不滿和抗議。據一月份的報告顯示，在2008年共有184億美元用來支付華爾街高級主管的獎金分紅。對已經得到政府援助的公司，在新的規則下必須調整自己來滿足規則的要求，并且對如何使用援助資金要進行嚴格監管和控制。

    US President Barack Obama kicked off a campaign to rein in corporate compensation yesterday with rules limiting executive pay to $500,000 a year for companies getting taxpayer bailout funds in the future.

    Obama, who sharply criticized Wall Street chiefs for accepting billions of dollars in bonuses last year while the economy fizzled, had promised compensation reform as part of a package of stricter regulations on the financial industry.

    The restrictions were a first step in a broad effort to overhaul compensation practices and are likely to be popular with average Americans, potentially diverting attention from Tuesday's high profile withdrawal of former Senator Tom Daschle's nomination to lead Obama's healthcare reform initiatives.

    An Obama administration official said the new rules would require companies that get exceptional government funds - such as financial giant Citigroup and insurer AIG have in the past - to abide by the cap.

    Additional compensation must be limited to restricted stock that does not vest until government money is paid back with interest.

    Companies that have previously received bailout money would have to agree to stricter oversight and prove that they have followed already established restrictions on executive compensation, which are widely seen as being too lax.

    The White House aims to hold banking executives accountable for the money they receive from government coffers with the new rules, which were presented as being in the interest of shareholders and taxpayers alike.

    "This is a reasonable approach," Obama said when describing the restrictions in an interview with CNN on Tuesday.

    "It's not a government takeover. Private enterprise will still be taking place, but people will be accountable and responsible and that's what we have to restore in the financial system in general."

    His announcement set in motion a long-term process to rein in high salaries on Wall Street, including steps to require all public financial institutions to disclose compensation arrangements and prove that they are compatible with sound risk management.