Pay czar Kenneth Feinberg said Friday that 17 banks overpaid executives in late 2008 and early 2009 by about $1.6 billion during the financial crisis when taxpayers’ money was being used to support them.

He proposed that financial firms adopt policies that would let them "restructure, reduce or cancel" bonus and other special payments to executives in future crises but said he had no authority to force banks to give back past overpayments.

Feinberg, the Obama administration’s special master for compensation, investigated pay practices at 419 banks that got government bailout money during the financial crisis but before pay restrictions came into force in early 2009.

Some $1.7 billion of cash bonuses, retention awards, stock grants and other payments that later came under restriction were made between late 2008 and February 2009. Seventeen banks accounted for $1.6 billion of that amount and Feinberg proposed their compensation committees voluntarily adopt measures to stop such practices in future.

"If the company’s board of directors has identified that the firm is in a crisis situation, the compensation committee would have the authority to restructure, reduce or cancel pending payments to executives — and this authority would supersede any rights and entitlements executives have in normal circumstances," a summary issued by Feinberg said.