CenterPoint shareholders voted 'no' on $37.8M in CEO compensation, but he'll still get paid
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — CenterPoint Energy shareholders voted to express disapproval of CEO David Lesar’s $37.8 million compensation during an annual shareholder meeting Friday.
But the vote, which came in the form of a non-binding “advisory resolution” that alerted stakeholders to how much money Lesar made last year, won't change how much Lesar pocketed in 2021.
“But it is quite notable in that utility shareholders very rarely vote down resolutions related to executive pay," said Karlee Weinmann, a manager with the Energy and Policy Institute, a watchdog group that first published Lesar’s compensation last week.
Indiana: CenterPoint CEO earns millions as Evansville-area residents' heating bills double
According to a proxy statement CenterPoint filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in March, Lesar collected a base salary of about $1.4 million in 2021. But he also netted more than $33 million in “stock awards” and more than $500,000 in perks such as traveling on company or chartered planes, his own security detail, use of a car, and relocation expenses.
The news came after a winter in which some Evansville-area residents saw their heating bills double due to large increases in natural gas prices and distribution charges.
CenterPoint customers in Southwestern Indiana also pay the highest electrical rates in the state, which often peak in the summer.
For subscribers: 'Unaffordable': CenterPoint ratepayers struggle to keep up as costs skyrocket
“We believe that this underlines the CenterPoint administration’s disconnect from working-class people just looking to be able to afford their utility bills,” Kendall Foust, an advocate with the activist group Direct Action Against CenterPoint Energy, told the Courier & Press last week.
In a statement, CenterPoint called the $33 million in stock a “one-time retention award.” They said Lesar “recognize(s) the importance of utility costs for our customers."
They claimed one of his priorities is to reduce the company's expenses and pass savings onto customers.
Lesar made $11.9 million in compensation in 2020, when he took over as CEO mid-year. More than $8 million of that came from stock, according to the proxy statement.
“We … value and respect the perspectives of our shareholders, and the board will take their views on executive compensation into consideration as we evaluate an approach that will serve the company and our investors,” CenterPoint board member and compensation committee chair Ted Pound said a news release after the shareholders meeting.
According to the Energy and Policy Institute, Lesar’s pay far outpaced CEO compensation at peer companies in 2021.
Contact Jon Webb at jon.webb@courierpress.com.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: CenterPoint shareholders disapprove of CEO's $37.8M compensation
