Scott, Warren Seek to Hold the Fed Accountable

Florida Senator Rick Scott (R) is leading a bipartisan effort to hold the Federal Reserve accountable. Joining Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren (D), Scott has introduced the Strengthening Federal Reserve System Accountability Act.

With the bill, the Senators seek to improve the way the Federal Reserve System is governed in an effort to make the fed more accountable and transparent. Just last week, both lawmakers directed a letter to the Federal Reserve Inspector General Mark Bialek, reaffirming the importance of making his position a presidentially-appointed and Senate-confirmed position for there to be greater accountability.

According to a press release from Scott’s office, the bill “would prohibit executives from large banks from serving on Reserve Bank boards of directors, require the Board of Governors and Reserve Banks to disclose more information about the Reserve Bank president and director selection processes, and subject Reserve Bank directors to ethics and financial conflict of interest rules.”

Bialek issued a letter to Senators Scott and Warren, questioning their proposed reform bill. However, this did not bode well with the lawmakers.

In their response, they shared that “both the tone and content of your letter were disturbing: you provide a misleading series of arguments and misrepresented your own success as Inspector General in what ultimately appeared to be a self-preservation effort to retain your current position ad your salary of over $350,000 annually.”

“Your letter failed to make an effective case against our legislation and was not a wise use of taxpayer dollars,” they added.

Senator Warren is scheduled to take part in a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Economic Policy. There, she will discuss her efforts to push for legislative reforms that will both strengthen accountability and transparency in the Fed. She will also further discuss the legislation introduced by her and Senator Scott.