General Motors Takes Steps to Become Public Again

"Government Motors" no more. General Motors has filed paperwork that will let it become a public company again, allowing the Treasury Department to begin selling its shares in the auto giant, The New York Times reported.

In its initial public offering registration Wednesday, GM did not say how many shares it planned to sell or set a price range, but the Times said the IPO has the potential to raise $15 billion or more.

"The amount of securities offered will be determined by market conditions and other factors at the time of the offering," GM said in a statement.

The filing did not disclose how much of its stake in the company the federal government would sell. Sources close to the automaker told the newspaper that Treasury was expected to give up about a fifth of its shares, "bringing the taxpayers' stake in GM below 50 percent."

In a statement Wednesday, the Treasury Department said it "will retain the right, at all times, to decide whether and at what level to participate in the offering."

The IPO's underwriters will include Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup.

GM has turned around significantly since its bankruptcy and bailout last year. The company says it has earned about $2.2 billion in the first half of this year, mostly in North America.