MORTGAGE FINANCE
Thursday, February 1, 2007; Page D04
MORTGAGE FINANCE
Republicans Question Mudd's Salary
Three Republican senators on the committee that oversees the government-chartered mortgage company Fannie Mae criticized the 25 percent pay raise chief executive Daniel H. Mudd received last year, saying it was wrong for regulators to allow the $14.25 million compensation package when the company is still correcting accounting methods.
Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, John E. Sununu of New Hampshire and Mel Martinez of Florida, members of the Senate Banking Committee, said they want an explanation from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, Fannie Mae's regulator.
Meanwhile, at an investor conference in New York, Mudd said that Fannie Mae would cut $200 million in expenses by year-end. Fannie Mae also plans to reduce "normal" operating costs to less than $2 billion annually. Fannie Mae will cap the size of its staff and its office space. "We've got to run the company faster, better and cheaper," Mudd said. "We're going to start with cheaper."
Fannie Mae hasn't filed quarterly financial results since July 2004.
LEGAL
Mills Sued Over Brookfield Offer
Mills, the mall developer that planned the $2 billion Meadowlands Xanadu project in New Jersey, was sued by two shareholders who asked a judge to stop the company's proposed sale to Brookfield Asset Management. Mills, based in Chevy Chase, said Jan. 17 it would be bought by Toronto-based Brookfield for $1.35 billion.
GOVERNANCE
New Rules for Sallie Mae Board Nominees
SLM, commonly known as Sallie Mae, the nation's largest provider of college-student loans, said it would require unopposed nominees for the board to win approval from a majority of shareholders to be elected. The decision changes the standard from the current requirement of a plurality vote, the Reston company said.
RADIO
XM Radio Extends Pact With Toyota
XM Satellite Radio, of the District, said it extended by seven years its agreement with Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. to have its satellite radios installed in Toyota and Lexus models. The new deal extends an existing pact to 2017 from 2010.
XM has deals with carmakers that account for about 59 percent of total U.S. vehicle production. Its rival, Sirius, has agreements with the rest.
Compiled from reports by Washington Post staff writers, the Associated Press and Bloomberg News.
