Executive perks

[roguevalley]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/nf200504274085db042;_ylt=AhUE0WFsaSfrstIznjrOMt0DW7oF;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

Executive perks have always occupied a special place in Corporate America -- largely hidden from view. Unlike information about salaries, bonuses, and stock options, which is readily available, details about executive perks have usually been skimpy at best and, for the most part, consigned to footnotes in the company proxy. But thanks to reforms by the Securities & Exchange Commission, that's starting to change. Companies are being prodded to disclose more perks -- and in more detail -- than ever before. And the picture isn't pretty.

In mid-April, Viacom (NYSE:VIA - News) revealed that it was reimbursing two top executives, co-Presidents Leslie Moonves and Thomas Freston, for sleeping in their own homes while in New York and Los Angeles on business. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MSO - News) has disclosed the payments that would be due to embattled CEO Philip Purcell if he were to leave the company because of a change in control -- an eye-popping $63 million. And security company Brinks (NYSE:BCO - News) now says its CEO, Michael Dan, gets a lot of things it never disclosed before, including use of the company plane, club dues, tax services, a security system for his home, and even a physical exam -- perks valued at about $14,000.

"THE DAM BROKE." The reason for the sudden openness on the subject: The SEC's tough new stance on disclosure. In September, the agency issued a cease-and-desist order to General Electric (NYSE:GE - News), saying its disclosure of the perks former CEO John Welch Jr. would receive in retirement violated reporting rules. GE neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing.

A month later, Alan Beller, director of the SEC's division of corporate finance, came down hard on companies that practice "opaque or unhelpful" disclosure. The effect was immediate: Pay researcher Equilar estimates that a third of all companies have made "significant" improvements to their compensation disclosures, especially on perks. And shareholder activists find what's being revealed downright shocking.

"The dam broke this season," says Patrick McGurn, senior vice-president of proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services. "The resulting floodwaters show that abuse is rampant."