Oct 20 (Reuters) - Representatives of Steven Rattner, the former head of the U.S. auto task force, and staff members of the New York Attorney General's office discussed a possible settlement over his role in a pay-to-play scheme involving the $132 billion state pension fund, the Wall Street Journal said.
It was unclear whether the two sides were close to an agreement or far apart, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.
Last week, a proposed settlement case between Rattner and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was unexpectedly dropped from the calendar for Thursday's non-public enforcement meeting.
The New York Attorney General's office and Rattner's lawyer were not immediately available for comment by Reuters outside regular U.S. business hours.
Rattner, who founded private equity firm Quadrangle Group LLC but left in 2009, is being investigated for his role in a suspected kickback scheme, and has resisted the proposed penalty from the SEC. (Reporting by Anand Basu in Bangalore; Editing by Michael Shields)