Document:

Exhibit 10.1 - MAA Q1 2015

    

Form of
RESTRICTED STOCK AWARD AGREEMENT
UNDER THE mid-america apartment communities, inc.
2013 STOCK INCENTIVE PLAN
Name of Grantee:        
No. of Shares:        
Grant Date:        
Pursuant to the Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. 2013 Stock Incentive Plan as amended through the date hereof (the “Plan”), and the Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (the “Company”) hereby grants a Restricted Stock Award (an “Award”) to the Grantee named above.  Upon acceptance of this Award, the Grantee shall receive the number of shares of Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share (the “Stock”) of the Company specified above, subject to the restrictions and conditions set forth herein and in the Plan.  The Company acknowledges the receipt from the Grantee of consideration with respect to the par value of the Stock in the form of cash, past or future services rendered to the Company by the Grantee or such other form of consideration as is acceptable to the Administrator.
1.Award.  The shares of Restricted Stock awarded hereunder shall be issued and held by the Company’s transfer agent in book entry form, and the Grantee’s name shall be entered as the stockholder of record on the books of the Company.  Thereupon, the Grantee shall have all the rights of a stockholder with respect to such shares, including voting and dividend rights, subject, however, to the restrictions and conditions specified in Paragraph 2 below.  The Grantee shall (i) either sign and deliver to the Company a copy of this Award Agreement or (ii) electronically accept the Award Agreement through any administrative site the Company may have in place from time to time.
2.Restrictions and Conditions.
(a)Any book entries for the shares of Restricted Stock granted herein shall bear an appropriate legend, as determined by the Administrator in its sole discretion, to the effect that such shares are subject to restrictions as set forth herein and in the Plan.
(b)Shares of Restricted Stock granted herein may not be sold, assigned, transferred, pledged or otherwise encumbered or disposed of by the Grantee prior to vesting.
(c)If the Grantee’s employment with the Company and its Subsidiaries is voluntarily terminated for any reason other than as provided in Paragraph 2(d) belowprior to vesting of shares of Restricted Stock granted herein, all shares of Restricted Stock shall immediately and automatically be forfeited and returned to the Company. 

(d)If the Grantee’s employment with the Company and its Subsidiaries is (i) involuntarily terminated without cause; (ii) on account of death; (iii) due to disability as determined by the Administrator in accordance with standards and procedures similar to those under the Company’s long-term disability plan; or (iv) due to retirement upon attainment of at least age 65 after completion of at least five (5) years of employment with the Company or upon attainment of age 55 and if the sum of the Participant’s age and number of years of employment with the Company is equal to 75 or more, prior to vesting of shares of Restricted Stock granted herein, all shares of Restricted Stock shall be immediately vested. 
(e)

3.Vesting of Restricted Stock.  The restrictions and conditions in Paragraph 2 of this Agreement shall lapse on the Vesting Date or Dates specified in the following schedule so long as the Grantee remains an employee of the Company or a Subsidiary on such Dates.  If a series of Vesting Dates is specified, then the restrictions and conditions in Paragraph 2 shall lapse only with respect to the number of shares of Restricted Stock specified as vested on such date.
	
		
	Incremental Number
of Shares Vested
	Vesting Date

	_____________ (___%)
	____________

	_____________ (___%)
	____________

	_____________ (___%)
	____________

	_____________ (___%)
	____________

	_____________ (___%)
	____________

Subsequent to such Vesting Date or Dates, the shares of Stock on which all restrictions and conditions have lapsed shall no longer be deemed Restricted Stock.  The Administrator may at any time accelerate the vesting schedule specified in this Paragraph 3.  Notwithstanding the foregoing or Sections 3(c) of the Plan, and notwithstanding the provisions of any employment or other agreement between the Grantee and Company or any Subsidiary that is in effect as of the date hereof, in the event of a Sale Event under which this Award is not assumed or continued by the successor entity in such Sale Event or substituted with a new award of such successor, this Award shall become immediately vested and the restrictions and conditions of Paragraph 2 shall lapse, whether or not vested at such time, subject to the provisions of the Plan, as of the effective time of such Sale Event.
4.Dividends.  Dividends on shares of Restricted Stock shall be paid currently to the Grantee.
5.Incorporation of Plan.  Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, this Award shall be subject to and governed by all the terms and conditions of the Plan, including the powers of the Administrator set forth in Section 2(b) of the Plan.  Capitalized terms in this Agreement shall have the meaning specified in the Plan, unless a different meaning is specified herein.
6.Transferability.  This Agreement is personal to the Grantee, is non-assignable and is not transferable in any manner, by operation of law or otherwise, other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution.
7.Tax Withholding.  The Grantee shall, not later than the date as of which the receipt of this Award becomes a taxable event for Federal income tax purposes, pay to the Company or make arrangements satisfactory to the Administrator for payment of any Federal, state, and local taxes required by law to be withheld on account of such taxable event.  Except in the case where an election is made pursuant to Paragraph 8 below, the Company shall have the authority to cause the required minimum tax withholding obligation to be satisfied, in whole or in part, by withholding from shares of Stock to be issued or released by the transfer agent a number of shares of Stock with an aggregate Fair Market Value that would satisfy the minimum withholding amount due.

8.Election Under Section 83(b).  The Grantee and the Company hereby agree that the Grantee may, within 30 days following the Grant Date of this Award, file with the Internal Revenue Service and the Company an election under Section 83(b) of the Internal Revenue Code.  In the event the Grantee makes such an election, he or she agrees to provide a copy of the election to the Company.  The Grantee acknowledges that he or she is responsible for obtaining the advice of his or her tax advisors with regard to the Section 83(b) election and that he or she is relying solely on such advisors and not on any statements or representations of the Company or any of its agents with regard to such election.
9.No Obligation to Continue Employment.  Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is obligated by or as a result of the Plan or this Agreement to continue the Grantee in employment and neither the Plan nor this Agreement shall interfere in any way with the right of the Company or any Subsidiary to terminate the employment of the Grantee at any time.
10.Integration.  This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties with respect to this Award and supersedes all prior agreements and discussions between the parties concerning such subject matter.
11.Data Privacy Consent.  In order to administer the Plan and this Agreement and to implement or structure future equity grants, the Company, its subsidiaries and affiliates and certain agents thereof (together, the “Relevant Companies”) may process any and all personal or professional data, including but not limited to Social Security or other identification number, home address and telephone number, date of birth and other information that is necessary or desirable for the administration of the Plan and/or this Agreement (the “Relevant Information”).  By entering into this Agreement, the Grantee (i) authorizes the Company to collect, process, register and transfer to the Relevant Companies all Relevant Information; (ii) waives any privacy rights the Grantee may have with respect to the Relevant Information; (iii) authorizes the Relevant Companies to store and transmit such information in electronic form; and (iv) authorizes the transfer of the Relevant Information to any jurisdiction in which the Relevant Companies consider appropriate.  The Grantee shall have access to, and the right to change, the Relevant Information.  Relevant Information will only be used in accordance with applicable law.

12.Notices.  Notices hereunder shall be mailed or delivered to the Company at its principal place of business and shall be mailed or delivered to the Grantee at the address on file with the Company or, in either case, at such other address as one party may subsequently furnish to the other party in writing.
MID-AMERICA APARTMENT COMMUNITIES, INC.
By:        
Title:
The foregoing Agreement is hereby accepted and the terms and conditions thereof hereby agreed to by the undersigned.  Electronic acceptance of this Agreement pursuant to the Company’s instructions to the Grantee (including through an online acceptance process) is acceptable.
Dated:                
Grantee’s Signature

Grantee’s name and address:NFG-3.31.2015-Exhibit10.1

Exhibit 10.1

Administrative Rules
of the
Compensation Committee
of the
Board of Directors
of
National Fuel Gas Company

As amended and restated
effective February 26, 2015

    

TABLE OF CONTENTS

	
											
	 
	 
	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	I.
	Meetings
	1

	 
	 
	 

	II .
	Quorum and Voting; Delegation
	2

	 
	 
	 

	III .
	Grants and Awards Under the Plans
	2

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	A.
	General Rules Regarding Awards Under the 1997 and 2010 Plans 
	3

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	 
	1.
	Making of An Award
	3

	 
	 
	2.
	Contemporaneous Awards
	3

	 
	 
	3.
	Stock-Based Awards
	3

	 
	 
	 
	a.
	Source
	3

	 
	 
	 
	b.
	Cash Dividends and Cash Dividend Equivalents
	3

	 
	 
	 
	 
	i.
	Stock Based Awards Other Than Restricted Stock
	3

	 
	 
	 
	 
	ii.
	Restricted Stock Awards
	4

	 
	 
	 
	c.
	Payment
	4

	 
	 
	4.
	Withholding Taxes
	4

	 
	 
	5.
	Deferral of Payment
	5

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	B.
	Stock Options Under the 1997 and 2010 Plans
	6

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	 
	1.
	Designation
	6

	 
	 
	2.
	Price
	6

	 
	 
	3.
	Exercise Period/Duration
	6

	 
	 
	 
	a.
	Non-Qualified Stock Options
	6

	 
	 
	 
	b.
	Incentive Stock Options
	7

	 
	 
	4.
	Death or Other Termination of Employment
	7

	 
	 
	 
	a.
	Definitions
	7

	 
	 
	 
	b.
	Non-Qualified Stock Options Under the 1997 Plan
	7

	 
	 
	5.
	Mechanics of Exercise
	8

	 
	 
	6.
	Reload Options
	8

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	C.
	SARs Under the 1997 or 2010 Plan
	8

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	D.
	Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units and Performance Shares 
Under the 1997 and 2010 Plans
	9

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	 
	1.
	Restrictions on Transferability; Vesting
	9

	 
	 
	2.
	Mechanics of Grant
	9

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	E.
	Suspension of Exercisability or Payment of Awards
	10

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

ii

    

	
											
	 
	 
	1.
	Authority to Suspend
	10

	 
	 
	2.
	Delegation of Authority
	10

	 
	 
	 

	IV .
	Procedures For Exercising Stock Options and SARs
	11

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	A.
	Authority and Scope
	11

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	B.
	Notice of Exercise
	11

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	 
	1.
	Form and Delivery
	11

	 
	 
	2.
	Exercise Date
	11

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	C.
	Payment of Exercise Price
	12

	 
	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	 
	1.
	Cash Payment
	12

	 
	 
	2.
	Payment with Existing Company Stock
	12

	 
	 
	3.
	Additional Time to Pay Exercise Price
	13

	 
	 
	4.
	Cashless Exercise
	14

	 
	 
	 
	 

	 
	D.
	Restrictions Relating to Possession of Material Nonpublic Information
	14

iii

ADMINISTRATIVE
RULES OF THE
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE
OF THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OF
NATIONAL FUEL GAS COMPANY

As amended and restated
effective February 26, 2015

I.    MEETINGS
Each meeting ("Meeting") of the Compensation Committee ("Committee") of the Board of Directors of National Fuel Gas Company ("Company") shall be held as indicated in a notice made in accordance with these rules.  Notice of each Meeting, stating the place, date and hour thereof, shall be given to each member of the Committee ("Member") by e-mailing, faxing, telephoning or personally delivering the same to him at least one day before the meeting, if there is no reason to believe it was not received, or by mailing the same to him at least five days before the Meeting, in all cases to the Member’s last known address or addresses as the same appears upon the records of the Company.  All such notices shall be effective when sent, including the leaving of a message recorded at, or spoken to any individual answering, the Member’s designated telephone number(s).  The attendance of any Member at a Meeting without protesting prior to the end of the Meeting the lack of notice of such meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice by that Member.
Any one or more Members of the Committee may participate in a Meeting by means of a conference telephone or similar equipment.  Participation by such means shall constitute presence in person at a Meeting. 
The Committee may also take action by unanimous written consent.

    

II.    QUORUM AND VOTING; DELEGATION
At all Meetings, a quorum shall be required for the transaction of business and shall consist of a majority of the entire Committee.  The majority vote of the Members at a Meeting at which a quorum is present shall decide any question that may come before the meeting.
Consistently with limitations imposed by the Plans (as defined below), the Committee may delegate in these rules or by resolution any or all of its authority to the Chief Executive Officer, to the Secretary and to any other officer of the Company (individually, "Delegate"), so long as the Delegate has no potential conflict of interest which would cause him or her not to exercise his or her good faith independent business judgment in respect of a delegated matter.  Subject to such limitations, the Committee hereby delegates the power to implement its decisions to appropriate officers of the Company.
III.    GRANTS AND AWARDS UNDER THE PLANS 
The following rules and regulations shall apply with respect to grants and awards made under the Company's 1997 Award and Option Plan ("1997 Plan") or the Company's 2010 Equity Compensation Plan ("2010 Plan") (as amended, each individually a "Plan;" together the "Plans"), including without limitation grants and awards of stock options, stock appreciation rights ("SARs"), shares of restricted stock ("Restricted Stock"), restricted stock units ("Restricted Stock Units") and performance shares (“Performance Shares”).  
Any capitalized term not defined in these rules shall have the same meaning as in the applicable Plan.  The following rules are intended to supplement the Plans and, to the extent that any rule is determined to be inconsistent with any Plan, the Plan shall control.
These rules may be amended by the Committee at any time and from time to time.  Except to the extent otherwise specified in the particular Award Notice or at the time these rules 

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are amended, any grant or award under the Plans shall be subject to these rules as in effect on the date of the grant or award.
		
	A.
	GENERAL RULES REGARDING AWARDS UNDER THE 1997 AND 2010 PLANS

1.    Making of An Award
An Award within the meaning of these rules occurs upon the grant by the Committee of any stock option, SAR, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Unit, Performance Share or other Award under a Plan.  An Award Notice within the meaning of these rules means a written notice from the Company to a Participant (including a notice provided to the recipient in an electronic form or by a link to cite of the notice) that sets forth the terms and conditions of an Award in addition to those conditions established in the applicable Plan and by the Committee's exercise of its administrative powers.
2.    Contemporaneous Awards  
Unless the Committee shall otherwise expressly provide at the time of grant, an Award of one type granted contemporaneously with an Award of any other type shall be treated as having been granted in combination, and not in the alternative, with the Award of the other type.
3.    Stock-based Awards
a.    Source.  Stock-based Awards, to the extent actually paid in Common Stock, shall reduce treasury shares (if any) first and thereafter authorized but unissued shares.  
b.    Cash Dividends and Cash Dividend Equivalents. 
(i)  Stock-Based Awards Other Than Restricted Stock.  No stock-based Award other than Restricted Stock carries with it the entitlement to receive cash 

3

    

dividends or cash dividend equivalents until such stock-based Award is exercised (in the case of a stock option or stock-settled SAR) or earned (in the case of an RSU, Performance Share or other stock-based Award).  If a stock-based Award is exercised or earned prior to or on the record date for determination of stockholders entitled to receive a cash dividend, then such stock-based Award or the securities resulting from the exercise thereof, as the case may be, shall be entitled to receive such cash dividend (or, if the shares related thereto have not been issued as of the record date, to receive a dividend equivalent in respect thereof).
(ii)  Restricted Stock Awards.  Notwithstanding clause (i) of this paragraph (b) or Section 24 of the 1997 Plan or Section 14(e) of the 2010 Plan, dividends shall be payable with respect to each outstanding Award of Restricted Stock whether or not the restrictions in such Award have been satisfied or have lapsed.
c.    Payment.  Payment of stock-based Awards shall be made with Common Stock.  
4.    Withholding Taxes
At the time a Participant is taxable with respect to stock options, SARs, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Performance Shares or other Awards granted under the Plans, or the exercise or surrender of the same, the Company (or, if applicable, an employer other than the Company) shall have the right to withhold from amounts payable to the Participant under the Plan or from other compensation payable to the Participant in its sole discretion, or require the Participant to pay to it, an amount sufficient to satisfy all federal, state and/or local (including foreign) withholding tax requirements.  With respect to the vesting of Restricted Stock and the vesting (and settlement in shares of Common Stock) of Restricted Stock Units and Performance Shares, the Company shall withhold from amounts payable to the Participant a number of shares of Common Stock sufficient to satisfy all federal, state and/or local (including 

4

    

foreign) withholding tax requirements, provided that the Participant may, at a time when he or she is not in possession of material nonpublic information relating to the Company and not subject to any quarterly or other “blackout period” imposed under the Company’s Policy on Insider Trading in National Fuel Gas Company Securities, elect to pay such tax withholding amounts in cash.  With respect to the exercise of stock options or SARs, the Participant may, subject to Section IV(D) below, pay tax withholding amounts in whole or in part by requesting that the Company withhold such amounts of taxes from the amounts owed to the Participant, or by delivering as payment to the Company shares of Common Stock to be canceled having a Fair Market Value less than or equal to the amount of such required withholding taxes (with the remainder payable in cash). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, to the extent that any tax withholding is satisfied by the Company’s withholding and/or canceling any shares of Common Stock, the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock withheld and/or canceled may not exceed the amount required to be withheld at law.
5.    Deferral of Payment 
The Committee intends to permit Participants to elect, at such time or times as the Committee shall permit, to defer the receipt of payment of Awards that are payable in cash; provided, however, that (1) under the then applicable income tax rules the Participant is not in constructive receipt of, and subject to income tax on, the payment prior to its actual receipt, (2) such deferral does not result in any of the Plans being subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, (3) if the Participant is an Executive Officer (i.e., is subject to Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including a retired officer who is, at the relevant time, a director), such election shall comply with Rule 16b-3 promulgated pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as then in effect, and (4) such election would  not result in the imposition of an additional tax under Section 409A of the Code 

5

    

on the Participant.  The Committee hereby delegates to the Chief Executive Officer, President, Treasurer, Secretary and General Counsel of the Company, and each of them, the Committee’s authority to establish the time or times at which deferral elections may be permitted in respect of any Award.  
B.    STOCK OPTIONS UNDER THE 1997 AND 2010 PLANS
1.    Designation    
The Award Notice setting forth the terms and conditions of a grant of a stock option shall indicate the applicable Plan under which the stock option is granted and whether the stock option is an incentive stock option (within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code, an “ISO”) or a non-qualified stock option (“NSO”).  The Committee hereby delegates to the Chief Executive Officer, President, Treasurer, Secretary and General Counsel of the Company, and each of them, the authority to prepare, execute and deliver Award Notices consistent with actions taken by the Committee.  The Committee hereby directs that any action taken by the Committee granting stock options without specifying whether the stock options are ISOs be interpreted as follows:  an award of stock options under the 1997 Plan or the 2010 Plan shall be deemed to be awards of NSOs only.
2.    Price 
The price at which Common Stock may be purchased upon exercise of a stock option (the “exercise price”) shall be the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock on the date of the Award.
3.    Exercise Period/Duration 
a.    Non-Qualified Stock Options.  Except as may otherwise be expressly provided in the Plan or in Section III(B)(4) of these rules, a non-qualified stock option first may be exercised twelve months after the date of grant. 

6

    

b.    Incentive Stock Options.  Except as may otherwise be expressly provided in the Plan, an ISO first may be exercised twelve months after the date of grant, or, if earlier, on the date of the optionee's death. 
4.    Death or Other Termination of Employment
a.    Definitions.  For purposes of these rules, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
(i)    For purposes of the 1997 Plan, "Disability" shall mean that the Participant is eligible to receive disability benefits under Article 3 of The National Fuel Gas Company Retirement Plan ("Retirement Plan"), as from time to time amended, or that the Participant would be eligible to receive such benefits if he or she were a participant in the Retirement Plan.
(ii)    "Subsidiary" shall mean a corporation or other business entity in which the Company directly or indirectly has an ownership interest of fifty percent (50%) or more.
b.    Non-Qualified Stock Options Under the 1997 Plan.  All NSOs outstanding under the 1997 Plan are currently exercisable.
(i)    If termination of employment occurs by reason of death, each NSO awarded under the 1997 Plan shall remain exercisable for five years from such termination or the balance of its unexpired term, whichever is less.  
(ii)    If termination of employment occurs by reason of discharge by the Company for cause, or voluntary resignation of the Participant prior to age 60, each NSO awarded under the 1997 Plan shall lapse unless extended by the Committee in its discretion.  
(iii)    If termination of employment occurs by reason of voluntary resignation (including retirement) at or after age 60, by reason of Disability, or for any other 

7

    

reason, each NSO awarded under the 1997 Plan shall remain exercisable for five years from such termination (or such greater period as the Committee deems appropriate) or the balance of its unexpired term, whichever is less.
5.    Mechanics of Exercise
To exercise a stock option, the Participant shall provide a signed exercise notice to an appropriate officer or other designee of the Company, which notice shall indicate which stock options are being exercised, how the exercise price is to be paid and any other appropriate information.  Appropriate delivery of a signed notice of exercise binds the Participant to pay the exercise price.  Part IV of these rules contains procedures for exercising stock options.
6.    Reload Options
No optionee shall be issued a new stock option automatically upon exercise of a stock option.  However, if the Award Notice provides for the issuance of such new stock option, the new stock option shall have an exercise price equal to the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock on the date the new stock option is issued and shall otherwise be subject, as nearly as possible, to the same terms and conditions as the exercised stock option. 
C.     SARs UNDER THE 1997 OR 2010 PLAN
The base price or grant price of a SAR shall be the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock on the date of the grant of the SAR.  Each SAR shall otherwise be subject to the terms and conditions imposed (i) by the Award Notice upon the SAR, (ii) by the applicable Plan, and (iii) by these rules upon SARs and NSOs, as applicable.  A SAR shall be outstanding and exercisable during the entire exercise period otherwise applicable to an NSO if the NSO had been granted on the same day as the SAR (as adjusted in accordance with Section III(B)(4) above in the event of death or other termination of employment).  All SARs outstanding under the 1997 Plan are currently exercisable.

8

    

To exercise a SAR, the Participant shall deliver a signed exercise notice to an appropriate officer or other designee of the Company, which notice shall indicate which SARs are being exercised, and any other appropriate information.  Part IV of these rules contains procedures for exercising SARs.  Any SAR not already exercised shall be deemed to be exercised at the close of business on the scheduled expiration date of such SAR, if at such time the SAR by its terms remains exercisable and, if so exercised, would result in a payment to the holder of such SAR.  If upon any such deemed exercise the payment to the holder of such SAR is to be made in shares of Common Stock, the holder of such SAR shall be deemed to have elected to pay the minimum required tax withholding in shares of Common Stock.
		
	D.
	RESTRICTED STOCK, RESTRICTED STOCK UNITS AND PERFORMANCE SHARES UNDER THE 1997 AND 2010 PLANS

1.    Restrictions on Transferability; Vesting
The restrictions on transferability and vesting and all other terms and conditions of Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units and Performance Shares granted under either the 1997 Plan or the 2010 Plan shall be specified in the Award Notice.  Except as otherwise provided in the applicable Plan, all shares of Restricted Stock and all Restricted Stock Units and Performance Shares shall be subject to the Participant's continued employment with the Company or a Subsidiary until vesting.  The Committee may accelerate the vesting of Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units or Performance Shares on its own motion as it deems appropriate and in the best interests of the Company.
2.    Mechanics of Grant
The Committee hereby delegates to appropriate officers of the Company the authority to establish and revise appropriate procedures with respect to the issuance of shares 

9

    

of Restricted Stock (whether represented by certificates or issued in book entry form) and the payment of dividends thereon.
E.    SUSPENSION OF EXERCISABILITY OR PAYMENT OF AWARDS
1.    Authority to Suspend
The Committee may, among other things, suspend or limit the exercisability or the payment of any Award under either Plan during any period:
(a)    for which counsel for the Company advises in writing that exercise or payment of such Award would violate federal or state securities laws or other applicable laws, rules, regulations, judgments, or orders; or
(b)    during which management is investigating an allegation that the Participant has engaged in any act which would permit the Committee to forfeit the Participant’s Award pursuant to Section 18 of the 1997 Plan or Section 14(c) of the 2010 Plan. 
Suspension of the payment of any Award may include, without limitation, suspension of the lapse of any restrictions on Restricted Stock and suspension of the expiration of any Restricted Period.
2.    Delegation of Authority
The Committee hereby delegates to the Chief Executive Officer, President, Treasurer, Secretary and General Counsel of the Company, and each of them, the Committee’s authority to suspend or limit the exercisability or the payment of any Award under either Plan during the periods described in Section III(E)(1) above.  Management shall report to the Committee at each Committee meeting any suspension actions taken or ongoing since the previous meeting, and the Committee shall adopt a resolution ratifying, continuing and/or discontinuing each such suspension.

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IV.    PROCEDURES FOR EXERCISING STOCK OPTIONS AND SARS
A.    AUTHORITY AND SCOPE
Notwithstanding any provision of any Award Notice issued before 1998, these are the exercise procedures for ISOs, NSOs and SARs issued under the 1997 Plan, the 2010 Plan, and (unless the Compensation Committee specifically orders otherwise) any other compensation plan which in the future is adopted by the Company.
B.    NOTICE OF EXERCISE
1.    Form and Delivery
A Participant holding stock options or SARs granted under any of the Plans elects to exercise stock options or SARs by delivering (by personal delivery, fax or e-mail) a Notice of Exercise to the office of the Company’s Secretary or Assistant Secretary or to a designee of such officers.  A Notice of Exercise is a writing signed by the Participant indicating that the Participant thereby elects to exercise the stock options or SARs identified in the Notice (including the quantity and either the stock option exercise price or the SAR base price), and describing the method by which the Participant will pay the exercise price of the stock options (there is no exercise price payment due in connection with the exercise of a SAR).  Appropriate delivery of a Notice of Exercise binds the Participant to pay the exercise price.  Optional forms of Notice of Exercise are attached to these rules as Exhibit A (stock options) and Exhibit B (SARs).
2.    Exercise Date
The effective date of a Notice of Exercise (the “Exercise Date”) will be the date the Notice of Exercise is received by the office of the Secretary or Assistant Secretary or by a designee of such officers; provided, however, that:

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(i)    a Notice of Exercise received on a trading day before trading opens that day on the New York Stock Exchange may validly designate the Exercise Date to be the preceding trading day; 
(ii)    a Notice of Exercise may validly designate the Exercise Date to be any date later than the date the Notice of Exercise is received; and
(iii)    if the exercise of a stock option is accomplished through a “cashless exercise” as described in Section IV(C)(4) below, the Exercise Date shall be the date the broker sells Company stock into the market regarding that exercise.
C.    PAYMENT OF EXERCISE PRICE
1.    Cash Payment
To pay the exercise price of a stock option in cash, a Participant must deliver to the Secretary or Assistant Secretary or to a designee of such officers payment in full, in cash or by check payable in immediately available U.S. funds to the Company, within three business days after the Exercise Date (except as additional time may be allowed under Section IV(C)(3) below).  For purposes of these rules, the term “business day” shall mean any day other than a Saturday, Sunday, federal holiday or day on which the Company’s principal office is closed for business.  Subject to Section IV(D) below, payment of the exercise price may be partly in cash and partly in Company stock as described in Section IV(C)(2) below, or may be accomplished through a “cashless exercise” as described in Section IV(C)(4) below.
2.    Payment with Existing Company Stock
To pay the exercise price in shares of Company stock already owned by a Participant, the Participant must surrender to the Company shares having a total Fair Market Value (as of the Exercise Date) of at least the total exercise price, or pay any shortfall in cash.  

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The Participant must, within three business days after the Exercise Date (except as additional time may be allowed under Section IV(C)(3) below) do one or both of the following:
		
	a.
	regarding shares in the Company’s Direct Registration System, comply with the Company’s procedures (including signature guarantee requirements) for transferring book-entry shares to the Company; or

		
	b.
	regarding shares that are evidenced by a paper stock certificate, deliver the certificate to the Secretary, Assistant Secretary or a designee of such officers.  Each certificate delivered must have a guaranteed signature either on the back or on a stock power to be attached.  The recommended procedure for mailing certificates is to mail the certificate and signed stock power separately.

3.    Additional Time to Pay Exercise Price
If the Participant’s payment of the exercise price would otherwise be required pursuant to Section IV(C)(1) or (2) above, and a Participant either
		
	a.
	is traveling away from his or her usual place of Company employment, or

		
	b.
	has a Disability as defined in the applicable Plan or these rules,

then, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the Participant may pay the exercise price on or before the first business day after the Participant’s return to his or her usual place of Company employment, but no later than the tenth business day after the Exercise Date.  However, the President, Chief Executive Officer, Treasurer or General Counsel of the Company shall have the authority to grant such additional time to pay the exercise price as is reasonably necessary to accommodate the travel or Disability of the Participant.

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4.    Cashless Exercise
The broker-assisted method of exercising stock options described in this Section IV(C)(4) (“cashless exercise”) requires no cash outlay by the Participant.  A Participant wishing to effect a cashless exercise must first establish a trading account with a registered securities broker-dealer.  Establishing that trading account will likely include the Participant’s commitment to pay the broker as described in their agreement.  Upon request by a Participant, the Secretary or Assistant Secretary will provide information that may help the Participant find a broker who has previously done cashless exercises with the Company and/or may be willing to do so at a discounted commission rate.  The Participant must provide the Secretary or Assistant Secretary with the Participant’s broker’s name, firm, address, telephone and fax numbers.
To effect a cashless exercise, the Participant must deliver a Notice of Exercise as described in Section IV(B)(1), and notify the Participant’s broker to proceed with the exercise and to notify the Company of the date the stock is sold.  The Participant’s broker will sell Company stock for the Participant’s account and pay to the Company the exercise price, plus any necessary tax withholding.  The Company will have share certificates delivered to the Participant’s broker within three business days after the Exercise Date, unless the Company elects to retain the certificates pending receipt of the exercise price.  The Participant will be required to pay the Participant’s broker according to the agreement between them, typically a few days’ interest on the exercise price plus a commission on the shares sold.
		
	D.
	RESTRICTIONS RELATING TO POSSESSION OF MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary provided above in these rules, a Participant may not, while in possession of material nonpublic information relating to the Company, or while subject to any quarterly or other “blackout period” imposed under the 

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Company’s Policy on Insider Trading in National Fuel Gas Company Securities, (i) pay the exercise price of a stock option with Company stock, (ii) pay tax withholding in connection with the exercise of a stock option by having Company stock withheld and/or canceled, (iii) exercise SARs, or (iv) effect a cashless exercise of stock options.  For a Participant subject to a quarterly or other blackout period, these prohibited transactions include any transaction the effective date of which occurs within the blackout period.  
The restrictions set forth in this Section IV(D) shall not apply to any deemed exercise of SARs or deemed payment of tax withholding in connection therewith pursuant to a Plan or these rules, or to any transaction effected pursuant to an instruction, contract or written plan that meets the requirements of Rule 10b5-1(c) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which provides a defense against insider trading liability.  An instruction, contract or written plan relating to any transactions set forth in this Section IV(D) and intended by a Participant to comply with Rule 10b5‐1 (such as a written 10b5-1 plan on a form provided by a stockbroker) must meet the requirements of Rule 10b5-1(c) and should be pre-approved by the Legal Department before the Participant enters into any transactions under that instruction, contract or written plan.

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