Teco Energy Chairman/CEO Compensated $3.9M In 2008

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — The chairman and chief executive of Florida utility Teco Energy Inc. received compensation valued at $3.9 million in 2008, about the same he made during the previous year, according to an Associated Press calculation of figures disclosed Wednesday in a regulatory filing.

The Tampa, Fla.-based company paid Sherrill W. Hudson an $826,189 base salary and awarded a performance-based bonus of $574,928.

Hudson, 66, also received stock and option awards valued at about $2.4 million on the days they were granted.

Additionally, Teco paid Hudson $122,869 in all other compensation, which included a $5,000-per-month housing and travel allowance and $46,902 to cover the company's cost for his use of the corporate plane, as well as contributions to life insurance and retirement savings plans, club membership dues and onsite parking costs.

Hudson's total pay package in 2007 was valued at $3.9 million, when he received stock and option awards valued at $2.3 million, according to a calculation by The Associated Press.

The Associated Press formula is designed to isolate the value the company's board placed on the executive's total compensation package during the last fiscal year. It includes salary, bonus, performance-related bonuses, perks, above-market returns on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock options and awards granted during the year.