Sen. Alan Armstrong (R-Okla.) is helping advance legislation sought by the natural gas company he formerly led while retaining performance-based stock awards that could pay out tens of millions of dollars depending on the company's financial results.
Armstrong, the former CEO and executive chairman of Williams Companies, introduced a bill in June that would limit states’ water-quality review powers over gas pipelines and other infrastructure projects.
At the time, Williams was still treating him as an employee for purposes of his stock awards. When he left the company to join the Senate in March, the company's board agreed to count his time as if he had stayed through July, preserving an estimated $2.8 million in stock he would otherwise have lost. The compensation committee said it made the change so he "would not be financially penalized for his public service."
