But while the plan would pare compensation substantially from what the highest-paid people at the companies might have received under normal circumstances, it would still permit multimillion-dollar pay packages.

In addition, it would have no direct impact on firms that did not receive government bailouts or that have already repaid loans they received from Washington. Therefore, it is unclear how much effect, if any, the plan will have on the broader issues relating to executive compensation, income inequality and the populist animosity toward Wall Street and corporate America.

The plan, which was written by Kenneth R. Feinberg, the official at the Treasury Department in charge of setting compensation for bailed-out companies, will be made public in a few days. The official who described the plan’s basic components did not disclose the particular impact on specific employees of the firms.

Wall Street is facing criticism and anger over the large year-end bonuses at many firms.

Firms like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley received tens of billions of dollars in loans and loan guarantees from the government but because they have returned the loans, they are no longer under any pay restrictions. With the financial markets and their profits recovering after the huge government assistance program last year, the three are expected to make huge payouts this year even as unemployment continues to rise.

The administration and regulators at the Federal Reserve have been preparing new guidelines to align executive pay scales at banks with appropriate risk-taking. But the White House, which has come under attack from conservatives for giving the government what they consider too large and intrusive a role in the economy, has also made clear that it has no intention of seeking to impose any broad-based caps on executive pay.