That's $3 billion in rewards for executives whose bad decisions ran the country into the current financial crisis.

No wonder Congress wants to limit the compensation of executives at companies participating in the proposed $700 billion rescue plan.

But bringing sanity and accountability to corporate executive pay levels should not be Congress's job.

The responsibility properly belongs with Corporate America's boards of directors.

When executives can run their companies into the ground and still cash in to the tune of tens of millions of dollars each, it's time for boards of directors to wise up.

Here's how outrageous the pay of American executives has become. Kerry Killinger was the chief executive of Washington Mutual before leaving last month, shortly before the failing savings and loan was seized by federal regulators.

For his failure, Killinger is entitled to $20 million in severance pay -- after being paid $54 million over five years.

Washington Mutual's stock is now worthless.

Killinger's successor, Alan Fishman, is entitled to a $7.5 million hiring bonus and $11.6 million in severance pay. He's been on the job for a month.

Similar stories of huge paychecks given to failed executives are surfacing at Wachovia, Citibank and elsewhere as America unravels what happened to its financial industry.

At the root are corporate pay levels at hundreds of America's biggest companies that are extravagant and too often tied to short-term results rather than long-term outcomes.

The chief executives of the 500 largest American companies received an average of $15 million a year in 2006, the latest year for which data are available.

Chief executives are now paid over 500 times more than the average American worker. In 1980 they were paid 40 times more.

Many chief executives are worth big paychecks. They build successful companies that create jobs, income and stockholder value.

But when executives are paid millions for failure, stockholders and employees should be outraged.

Congressional concern is understandable, especially when taxpayers are being tapped for a rescue plan. But government should not be in the business of determining corporate pay levels.

Instead, corporate boards of directors should fulfill their responsibility by reining in runaway executive pay levels and requiring pay to more closely match long-term performance.

Stockholders should demand it.