Acting in rapid fashion, on July 31, 2009, the House of Representatives passed legislation that, if enacted, would further advance the federal government's efforts to realign executive compensation practices. As we reported in our July 22, 2009 blog, the Treasury Department released draft legislation just two weeks earlier to require (i) an annual shareholder vote to approve named executive officer compensation, (ii) a shareholder vote to approve golden parachute arrangements and (iii) enhanced compensation committee independence and authority. The House-approved legislation, which now has been referred to the Senate's Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, in some respects goes even further than what was originally contemplated by Treasury.

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