The Federal Reserve Board of Governors is a body that oversees the nation’s banking system and bank holding companies. It is also charged with conducting research on domestic and international financial developments. Its main functions include regulation of the Federal Reserve Banks, the nation’s payments system, and consumer credit protection laws.
The Fed chair is an executive officer who oversees the board’s day-to-day operations. He or she also serves as a spokesperson for the Federal Reserve and negotiates with the president, Congress, and other members of the executive branch. In some cases, the Fed’s chairman is given authority to make policy decisions that do not require approval by the President. Nevertheless, the President can speak out about the direction of the Fed.
The Fed chair is an active executive who reports to Congress twice a year. However, he or she does not have the power to remove or appoint a member of the Fed. This means that the President can appoint someone to fill a vacant seat on the Board. Occasionally, someone from a previous administration will be appointed to fill that spot.
During the Obama years, the Fed became known for economic stimulus measures. Its quantitative easing program helped alleviate the housing crisis, and the Fed acted as a lender to commercial banks. But, inflation had fallen well below the Fed’s target.
In his first year on the Board, Powell echoed the recommendations of Janet Yellen, a former Yale University economist and White House advisor. She argued that the Fed should raise short-term interest rates and fight inflation. Initially, Powell followed Yellen’s recommendation of raising rates slowly.
However, Yellen’s policy was criticized by Donald Trump in the 2016 campaign. At the same time, the Fed’s chairman also faced criticism from Senator Elizabeth Warren, who said that the tools the Fed uses are painful.
While Yellen is a good Fed chair, she has yet to be reappointed by the current President. Instead, President Trump has appointed Jerome Hayden “Jay” Powell. Despite some criticism, he has been confirmed as the Federal Reserve’s chair. His term will end in 2022. Unlike Yellen, who is not an ivory-tower economist, Powell is a data-driven individual who is viewed as a centrist.
Earlier in his tenure, he worked as an under secretary of finance in the Treasury Department of George H.W. Bush. Before that, he served as a visiting scholar at the Bipartisan Policy Center. As a result, he is better suited for overseeing the Fed’s balance sheet unwinding.
Currently, the Federal Reserve has $4.5 trillion in assets. It is expected that the Fed will soon begin to unwind its balance sheet, allowing more money to be put into the financial system. When that happens, it will impact the paychecks of millions of Americans.
According to Federal Reserve officials, the central bank’s role is to keep inflation stable and maintain the economy’s 2 percent annual growth rate. This is a complex task that requires the Fed to do several things. For example, it can purchase bonds to reduce the cost of borrowing. It can also set the discount rate, which is a way to increase the money supply.