IIB 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3189 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 30, 2015 

Received 

DECEMBER 17, 2015 

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

Affairs 

AN ACT 

To amend the Federal Reserve Act to establish requirements 

for policy rules and blackout periods of the Federal Open 

Market Committee, to establish requirements for certain 

activities of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and to amend title 31, United States Code, 

to reform the manner in which the Board of Governors 

of the Federal Reserve System is audited, and for other 

purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Fed Oversight Reform and Modernization Act of 2015’’ 

6 or the ‘‘FORM Act of 2015’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Requirements for policy rules of the Federal Open Market Committee. 

Sec. 3. Federal Open Market Committee blackout period. 

Sec. 4. Membership of Federal Open Market Committee. 

Sec. 5. Requirements for stress tests and supervisory letters for the Board of 

Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Sec. 6. Frequency of testimony of the Chairman of the Board of Governors of 

the Federal Reserve System to Congress. 

Sec. 7. Vice Chairman for Supervision report requirement. 

Sec. 8. Economic analysis of regulations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Sec. 9. Salaries, financial disclosures, and office staff of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Sec. 10. Requirements for international processes. 

Sec. 11. Amendments to powers of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Sec. 12. Interest rates on balances maintained at a Federal Reserve bank by 

depository institutions established by Federal Open Market 

Committee. 

Sec. 13. Audit reform and transparency for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Sec. 14. Reporting requirement for Export-Import Bank. 

Sec. 15. Membership of Board of Directors of the Federal reserve banks. 

Sec. 16. Establishment of a Centennial Monetary Commission. 

Sec. 17. Elimination of surplus funds of Federal reserve banks. 

Sec. 18. Public transcripts of FOMC meetings. 

9 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR POLICY RULES OF THE FED10 ERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE. 

11 The Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 221 et seq.) is 

12 amended by inserting after section 2B the following new 

13 section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 2C. DIRECTIVE POLICY RULES OF THE FEDERAL 

2 OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section the following 

4 definitions shall apply: 

5 ‘‘(1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT6 TEES.—The term ‘appropriate congressional com7 mittees’ means the Committee on Financial Services 

8 of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

9 on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Sen10 ate. 

11 ‘‘(2) DIRECTIVE POLICY RULE.—The term ‘Di12 rective Policy Rule’ means a policy rule developed by 

13 the Federal Open Market Committee that meets the 

14 requirements of subsection (c) and that provides the 

15 basis for the Open Market Operations Directive. 

16 ‘‘(3) GDP.—The term ‘GDP’ means the gross 

17 domestic product of the United States as computed 

18 and published by the Department of Commerce. 

19 ‘‘(4) INTERMEDIATE POLICY INPUT.—The term 

20 ‘Intermediate Policy Input’— 

21 ‘‘(A) may include any variable determined 

22 by the Federal Open Market Committee as a 

23 necessary input to guide open-market oper24 ations; 


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1 ‘‘(B) shall include an estimate of, and the 

2 method of calculation for, the current rate of 

3 inflation or current inflation expectations; and 

4 ‘‘(C) shall include, specifying whether the 

5 variable or estimate is historical, current, or a 

6 forecast and the method of calculation, at least 

7 one of— 

8 ‘‘(i) an estimate of real GDP, nominal 

9 GDP, or potential GDP; 

10 ‘‘(ii) an estimate of the monetary ag11 gregate compiled by the Board of Gov12 ernors of the Federal Reserve System and 

13 Federal reserve banks; or 

14 ‘‘(iii) an interactive variable or a net 

15 estimate composed of the estimates de16 scribed in clauses (i) and (ii). 

17 ‘‘(5) LEGISLATIVE DAY.—The term ‘legislative 

18 day’ means a day on which either House of Congress 

19 is in session. 

20 ‘‘(6) OPEN MARKET OPERATIONS DIRECTIVE.— 

21 The term ‘Open Market Operations Directive’ means 

22 an order to achieve a specified Policy Instrument 

23 Target provided to the Federal Reserve Bank of 

24 New York by the Federal Open Market Committee 


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1 pursuant to powers authorized under section 14 of 

2 this Act that guide open-market operations. 

3 ‘‘(7) POLICY INSTRUMENT.—The term ‘Policy 

4 Instrument’ means— 

5 ‘‘(A) the nominal Federal funds rate; 

6 ‘‘(B) the nominal rate of interest paid on 

7 nonborrowed reserves; or 

8 ‘‘(C) the discount window primary credit 

9 interest rate most recently published on the 

10 Federal Reserve Statistical Release on selected 

11 interest rates (daily or weekly), commonly re12 ferred to as the H.15 release. 

13 ‘‘(8) POLICY INSTRUMENT TARGET.—The term 

14 ‘Policy Instrument Target’ means the target for the 

15 Policy Instrument specified in the Open Market Op16 erations Directive. 

17 ‘‘(9) REFERENCE POLICY RULE.—The term 

18 ‘Reference Policy Rule’ means a calculation of the 

19 nominal Federal funds rate as equal to the sum of 

20 the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) The rate of inflation over the pre22 vious four quarters. 

23 ‘‘(B) One-half of the percentage deviation 

24 of the real GDP from an estimate of potential 

25 GDP. 


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1 ‘‘(C) One-half of the difference between the 

2 rate of inflation over the previous four quarters 

3 and two percent. 

4 ‘‘(D) Two percent. 

5 ‘‘(b) SUBMITTING A DIRECTIVE POLICY RULE.—Not 

6 later than 48 hours after the end of a meeting of the Fed7 eral Open Market Committee, the Chairman of the Fed8 eral Open Market Committee shall submit to the appro9 priate congressional committees and the Comptroller Gen10 eral of the United States a Directive Policy Rule and a 

11 statement that identifies the members of the Federal Open 

12 Market Committee who voted in favor of the Rule. 

13 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR A DIRECTIVE POLICY

14 RULE.—A Directive Policy Rule shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) identify the Policy Instrument the Direc16 tive Policy Rule is designed to target; 

17 ‘‘(2) describe the strategy or rule of the Federal 

18 Open Market Committee for the systematic quan19 titative adjustment of the Policy Instrument Target 

20 to respond to a change in the Intermediate Policy 

21 Inputs; 

22 ‘‘(3) include a function that comprehensively 

23 models the interactive relationship between the In24 termediate Policy Inputs; 


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1 ‘‘(4) include the coefficients of the Directive 

2 Policy Rule that generate the current Policy Instru3 ment Target and a range of predicted future values 

4 for the Policy Instrument Target if changes occur in 

5 any Intermediate Policy Input; 

6 ‘‘(5) describe the procedure for adjusting the 

7 supply of bank reserves to achieve the Policy Instru8 ment Target; 

9 ‘‘(6) include a statement as to whether the Di10 rective Policy Rule substantially conforms to the 

11 Reference Policy Rule and, if applicable— 

12 ‘‘(A) an explanation of the extent to which 

13 it departs from the Reference Policy Rule; 

14 ‘‘(B) a detailed justification for that depar15 ture; and 

16 ‘‘(C) a description of the circumstances 

17 under which the Directive Policy Rule may be 

18 amended in the future; 

19 ‘‘(7) include a certification that such Rule is ex20 pected to support the economy in achieving stable 

21 prices and maximum natural employment over the 

22 long term; 

23 ‘‘(8) include a calculation that describes with 

24 mathematical precision the expected annual inflation 

25 rate over a 5-year period; and 


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1 ‘‘(9) include a plan to use the most accurate 

2 data, subject to all historical revisions, for inputs 

3 into the Directive Policy Rule and the Reference 

4 Policy Rule. 

5 ‘‘(d) GAO REPORT.—The Comptroller General of the 

6 United States shall compare the Directive Policy Rule sub7 mitted under subsection (b) with the rule that was most 

8 recently submitted to determine whether the Directive Pol9 icy Rule has materially changed. If the Directive Policy 

10 Rule has materially changed, the Comptroller General 

11 shall, not later than 7 days after each meeting of the Fed12 eral Open Market Committee, prepare and submit a com13 pliance report to the appropriate congressional committees 

14 specifying whether the Directive Policy Rule submitted 

15 after that meeting and the Federal Open Market Com16 mittee are in compliance with this section. 

17 ‘‘(e) CHANGING MARKET CONDITIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

19 this Act shall be construed to require that the plans 

20 with respect to the systematic quantitative adjust21 ment of the Policy Instrument Target described 

22 under subsection (c)(2) be implemented if the Fed23 eral Open Market Committee determines that such 

24 plans cannot or should not be achieved due to 

25 changing market conditions. 


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1 ‘‘(2) GAO APPROVAL OF UPDATE.—Upon deter2 mining that plans described in paragraph (1) cannot 

3 or should not be achieved, the Federal Open Market 

4 Committee shall submit an explanation for that de5 termination and an updated version of the Directive 

6 Policy Rule to the Comptroller General of the 

7 United States and the appropriate congressional 

8 committees not later than 48 hours after making the 

9 determination. The Comptroller General shall, not 

10 later than 48 hours after receiving such updated 

11 version, prepare and submit to the appropriate con12 gressional committees a compliance report deter13 mining whether such updated version and the Fed14 eral Open Market Committee are in compliance with 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘(f) DIRECTIVE POLICY RULE AND FEDERAL OPEN

17 MARKET COMMITTEE NOT IN COMPLIANCE.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Comptroller General 

19 of the United States determines that the Directive 

20 Policy Rule and the Federal Open Market Com21 mittee are not in compliance with this section in the 

22 report submitted pursuant to subsection (d), or that 

23 the updated version of the Directive Policy Rule and 

24 the Federal Open Market Committee are not in com25 pliance with this section in the report submitted purVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:46 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3189.RFS H3189

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1 suant to subsection (e)(2), the Chairman of the 

2 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

3 shall, if requested by the chairman of either of the 

4 appropriate congressional committees, not later than 

5 7 legislative days after such request, testify before 

6 such committee as to why the Directive Policy Rule, 

7 the updated version, or the Federal Open Market 

8 Committee is not in compliance. 

9 ‘‘(2) GAO AUDIT.—Notwithstanding subsection 

10 (b) of section 714 of title 31, United States Code, 

11 upon submitting a report of noncompliance pursuant 

12 to subsection (d) or subsection (e)(2) and after the 

13 period of 7 legislative days described in paragraph 

14 (1), the Comptroller General shall audit the conduct 

15 of monetary policy by the Board of Governors of the 

16 Federal Reserve System and the Federal Open Mar17 ket Committee upon request of the appropriate con18 gressional committee. Such committee may specify 

19 the parameters of such audit. 

20 ‘‘(g) CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS.—The Chairman of 

21 the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

22 shall, if requested by the chairman of either of the appro23 priate congressional committees and not later than 7 legis24 lative days after such request, appear before such comVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:46 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3189.RFS H3189

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1 mittee to explain any change to the Directive Policy 

2 Rule.’’. 

3 SEC. 3. FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE BLACKOUT 

4 PERIOD. 

5 Section 12A of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 

6 263) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

7 subsection: 

8 ‘‘(d) BLACKOUT PERIOD.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—During a blackout period, 

10 the only public communications that may be made 

11 by members and staff of the Committee with respect 

12 to macroeconomic or financial developments or about 

13 current or prospective monetary policy issues are the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(A) The dissemination of published data, 

16 surveys, and reports that have been cleared for 

17 publication by the Board of Governors of the 

18 Federal Reserve System. 

19 ‘‘(B) Answers to technical questions spe20 cific to a data release. 

21 ‘‘(C) Communications with respect to the 

22 prudential or supervisory functions of the 

23 Board of Governors. 

24 ‘‘(2) BLACKOUT PERIOD DEFINED.—For pur25 poses of this subsection, and with respect to a meetVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:46 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3189.RFS H3189

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1 ing of the Committee described under subsection (a), 

2 the term ‘blackout period’ means the time period 

3 that— 

4 ‘‘(A) begins immediately after midnight on 

5 the day that is one week prior to the date on 

6 which such meeting takes place; and 

7 ‘‘(B) ends at midnight on the day after the 

8 date on which such meeting takes place. 

9 ‘‘(3) EXEMPTION FOR CHAIRMAN OF THE

10 BOARD OF GOVERNORS.—Nothing in this section 

11 shall prohibit the Chairman of the Board of Gov12 ernors of the Federal Reserve System from partici13 pating in or issuing public communications.’’. 

14 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP OF FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COM15 MITTEE. 

16 Section 12A(a) of the Federal Reserve Act (12 

17 U.S.C. 263(a)) is amended— 

18 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘five’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘six’’; 

20 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘One by 

21 the board of directors’’ and all that follows through 

22 the period at the end and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘One by the boards of directors of the Federal Re24 serve Banks of New York and Boston; one by the 

25 boards of directors of the Federal Reserve Banks of 


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1 Philadelphia and Cleveland; one by the boards of di2 rectors of the Federal Reserve Banks of Richmond 

3 and Atlanta; one by the boards of directors of the 

4 Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago and St. Louis; 

5 one by the boards of directors of the Federal Re6 serve Banks of Minneapolis and Kansas City; and 

7 one by the boards of directors of the Federal Re8 serve Banks of Dallas and San Francisco.’’; and 

9 (3) by inserting after the second sentence the 

10 following: ‘‘In odd numbered calendar years, one 

11 representative shall be elected from each of the Fed12 eral Reserve Banks of Boston, Philadelphia, Rich13 mond, Chicago, Minneapolis, and Dallas. In even14 numbered calendar years, one representative shall be 

15 elected from each of the Federal Reserve Banks of 

16 New York, Cleveland, Atlanta, St. Louis, Kansas 

17 City, and San Francisco.’’. 

18 SEC. 5. REQUIREMENTS FOR STRESS TESTS AND SUPER19 VISORY LETTERS FOR THE BOARD OF GOV20 ERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. 

21 (a) STRESS TEST RULEMAKING, GAO REVIEW, AND

22 PUBLICATION OF RESULTS.—Section 165(i)(1)(B) of the 

23 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protec24 tion Act (12 U.S.C. 5365(i)(1)(B)) is amended— 

25 (1) by amending clause (i) to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(i) shall— 

2 ‘‘(I) issue regulations, after pro3 viding for public notice and comment, 

4 that provide for at least 3 different 

5 sets of conditions under which the 

6 evaluation required by this subsection 

7 shall be conducted, including baseline, 

8 adverse, and severely adverse, and 

9 methodologies, including models used 

10 to estimate losses on certain assets; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(II) provide copies of such regu13 lations to the Comptroller General of 

14 the United States and the Panel of 

15 Economic Advisors of the Congres16 sional Budget Office before publishing 

17 such regulations;’’; and 

18 (2) in clause (v), by inserting before the period 

19 the following: ‘‘, including any results of a resub20 mitted test’’. 

21 (b) APPLICATION OF CCAR.—Section 165(i)(1) of 

22 such Act is further amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing new subparagraph: 

24 ‘‘(C) APPLICATION TO CCAR.—The require25 ments of subparagraph (B) shall apply to all 


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1 stress tests performed under the Comprehensive 

2 Capital Analysis and Review exercise estab3 lished by the Board of Governors.’’. 

4 (c) PUBLICATION OF THE NUMBER OF SUPERVISORY

5 LETTERS SENT TO THE LARGEST BANK HOLDING COM6 PANIES.—Section 165 of such Act is further amended by 

7 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(l) PUBLICATION OF SUPERVISORY LETTER INFOR9 MATION.—The Board of Governors shall publicly dis10 close— 

11 ‘‘(1) the aggregate number of supervisory let12 ters sent to bank holding companies described in 

13 subsection (a) since the date of the enactment of 

14 this section, and keep such number updated; and 

15 ‘‘(2) the aggregate number of such letters that 

16 are designated as ‘Matters Requiring Attention’ and 

17 the aggregate number of such letters that are des18 ignated as ‘Matters Requiring Immediate Atten19 tion’.’’. 

20 SEC. 6. FREQUENCY OF TESTIMONY OF THE CHAIRMAN OF 

21 THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FED22 ERAL RESERVE SYSTEM TO CONGRESS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2B of the Federal Reserve 

24 Act (12 U.S.C. 225b) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘semi-annual’’ each place it ap2 pears and inserting ‘‘quarterly’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (a)(2)— 

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘and October 20’’ after 

5 ‘‘July 20’’ each place it appears; and 

6 (B) by inserting ‘‘and May 20’’ after 

7 ‘‘February 20’’ each place it appears. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (12) of 

9 section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 

10 247b(12)) is amended by striking ‘‘semi-annual’’ and in11 serting ‘‘quarterly’’. 

12 SEC. 7. VICE CHAIRMAN FOR SUPERVISION REPORT RE13 QUIREMENT. 

14 Paragraph (12) of section 10 of the Federal Reserve 

15 Act (12 U.S.C. 247(b)) is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating such paragraph as para17 graph (11); and 

18 (2) in such paragraph, by adding at the end the 

19 following: ‘‘In each such appearance, the Vice Chair20 man for Supervision shall provide written testimony 

21 that includes the status of all pending and antici22 pated rulemakings that are being made by the 

23 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

24 If, at the time of any appearance described in this 

25 paragraph, the position of Vice Chairman for SuperVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:46 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3189.RFS H3189

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1 vision is vacant, the Vice Chairman for the Board of 

2 Governors of the Federal Reserve System (who has 

3 the responsibility to serve in the absence of the 

4 Chairman) shall appear instead and provide the re5 quired written testimony. If, at the time of any ap6 pearance described in this paragraph, both Vice 

7 Chairman positions are vacant, the Chairman of the 

8 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

9 shall appear instead and provide the required writ10 ten testimony.’’. 

11 SEC. 8. ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF REGULATIONS OF THE 

12 BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RE13 SERVE SYSTEM. 

14 (a) AMENDMENT TO FEDERAL RESERVE ACT.—Sec15 tion 11 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 248) is 

16 amended by inserting after subsection (l) the following 

17 new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(m) CONSIDERATION OF ECONOMIC IMPACTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Before issuing any regula20 tion, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 

21 System shall— 

22 ‘‘(A) clearly identify the nature and source 

23 of the problem that the proposed regulation is 

24 designed to address and assess the significance 

25 of that problem; 


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1 ‘‘(B) assess whether any new regulation is 

2 warranted or, with respect to a proposed regu3 lation that the Board of Governors is required 

4 to issue by statute and with respect to which 

5 the Board has the authority to exempt certain 

6 persons from the application of such regulation, 

7 compare— 

8 ‘‘(i) the costs and benefits of the pro9 posed regulation; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) the costs and benefits of a regu11 lation under which the Board exempts all 

12 persons from the application of the pro13 posed regulation, to the extent the Board 

14 is able; 

15 ‘‘(C) assess the qualitative and quan16 titative costs and benefits of the proposed regu17 lation and propose or adopt a regulation only 

18 on a reasoned determination that the benefits 

19 of the proposed regulation outweigh the costs of 

20 the regulation; 

21 ‘‘(D) identify and assess available alter22 natives to the proposed regulation that were 

23 considered, including any alternative offered by 

24 a member of the Board of Governors of the 

25 Federal Reserve System or the Federal Open 


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1 Market Committee and including any modifica2 tion of an existing regulation, together with an 

3 explanation of why the regulation meets the 

4 regulatory objectives more effectively than the 

5 alternatives; and 

6 ‘‘(E) ensure that any proposed regulation 

7 is accessible, consistent, written in plain lan8 guage, and easy to understand and shall meas9 ure, and seek to improve, the actual results of 

10 regulatory requirements. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS AND ACTIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) REQUIRED ACTIONS.—In deciding 

13 whether and how to regulate, the Board shall 

14 assess the costs and benefits of available regu15 latory alternatives, including the alternative of 

16 not regulating, and choose the approach that 

17 maximizes net benefits. Specifically, the Board 

18 shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) evaluate whether, consistent with 

20 achieving regulatory objectives, the regula21 tion is tailored to impose the least impact 

22 on the availability of credit and economic 

23 growth and to impose the least burden on 

24 society, including market participants, in25 dividuals, businesses of different sizes, and 


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1 other entities (including State and local 

2 governmental entities), taking into ac3 count, to the extent practicable, the cumu4 lative costs of regulations; 

5 ‘‘(ii) evaluate whether the regulation 

6 is inconsistent, incompatible, or duplicative 

7 of other Federal regulations; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) with respect to a proposed regu9 lation that the Board is required to issue 

10 by statute and with respect to which the 

11 Board has the authority to exempt certain 

12 persons from the application of such regu13 lation, compare— 

14 ‘‘(I) the costs and benefits of the 

15 proposed regulation; and 

16 ‘‘(II) the costs and benefits of a 

17 regulation under which the Board ex18 empts all persons from the application 

19 of the proposed regulation, to the ex20 tent the Board is able. 

21 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS.—In 

22 addition, in making a reasoned determination of 

23 the costs and benefits of a proposed regulation, 

24 the Board shall, to the extent that each is rel25 evant to the particular proposed regulation, 


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1 take into consideration the impact of the regu2 lation, including secondary costs such as an in3 crease in the cost or a reduction in the avail4 ability of credit or investment services or prod5 ucts, on— 

6 ‘‘(i) the safety and soundness of the 

7 United States banking system; 

8 ‘‘(ii) market liquidity in securities 

9 markets; 

10 ‘‘(iii) small businesses; 

11 ‘‘(iv) community banks; 

12 ‘‘(v) economic growth; 

13 ‘‘(vi) cost and access to capital; 

14 ‘‘(vii) market stability; 

15 ‘‘(viii) global competitiveness; 

16 ‘‘(ix) job creation; 

17 ‘‘(x) the effectiveness of the monetary 

18 policy transmission mechanism; and 

19 ‘‘(xi) employment levels. 

20 ‘‘(3) EXPLANATION AND COMMENTS.—The 

21 Board shall explain in its final rule the nature of 

22 comments that it received and shall provide a re23 sponse to those comments in its final rule, including 

24 an explanation of any changes that were made in re25 sponse to those comments and the reasons that the 


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1 Board did not incorporate concerns related to the 

2 potential costs or benefits in the final rule. 

3 ‘‘(4) POSTADOPTION IMPACT ASSESSMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Whenever the Board 

5 adopts or amends a regulation designated as a 

6 ‘major rule’ within the meaning of section 

7 804(2) of title 5, United States Code, it shall 

8 state, in its adopting release, the following: 

9 ‘‘(i) The purposes and intended con10 sequences of the regulation. 

11 ‘‘(ii) The assessment plan that will be 

12 used, consistent with the requirements of 

13 subparagraph (B), to assess whether the 

14 regulation has achieved the stated pur15 poses. 

16 ‘‘(iii) Appropriate postimplementation 

17 quantitative and qualitative metrics to 

18 measure the economic impact of the regu19 lation and the extent to which the regula20 tion has accomplished the stated purpose 

21 of the regulation. 

22 ‘‘(iv) Any reasonably foreseeable indi23 rect effects that may result from the regu24 lation. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS OF ASSESSMENT

2 PLAN AND REPORT.— 

3 ‘‘(i) REQUIREMENTS OF PLAN.—The 

4 assessment plan required under this para5 graph shall consider the costs, benefits, 

6 and intended and unintended consequences 

7 of the regulation. The plan shall specify 

8 the data to be collected, the methods for 

9 collection and analysis of the data, and a 

10 date for completion of the assessment. The 

11 assessment plan shall include an analysis 

12 of any jobs added or lost as a result of the 

13 regulation, differentiating between public 

14 and private sector jobs. 

15 ‘‘(ii) SUBMISSION AND PUBLICATION

16 OF REPORT.—The Board shall, not later 

17 than 2 years after the publication of the 

18 adopting release, publish the assessment 

19 plan in the Federal Register for notice and 

20 comment. If the Board determines, at least 

21 90 days before the deadline for publication 

22 of the assessment plan, that an extension 

23 is necessary, the Board shall publish a no24 tice of such extension and the specific rea25 sons why the extension is necessary in the 


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1 Federal Register. Any material modifica2 tion of the assessment plan, as necessary 

3 to assess unforeseen aspects or con4 sequences of the regulation, shall be 

5 promptly published in the Federal Register 

6 for notice and comment. 

7 ‘‘(iii) DATA COLLECTION NOT SUB8 JECT TO NOTICE AND COMMENT REQUIRE9 MENTS.—If the Board has published the 

10 assessment plan for notice and comment at 

11 least 30 days before the adoption of a reg12 ulation designated as a major rule, the col13 lection of data under the assessment plan 

14 shall not be subject to the notice and com15 ment requirements in section 3506(c) of 

16 title 44, United States Code (commonly re17 ferred to as the Paperwork Reduction Act). 

18 Any material modification of the plan that 

19 requires collection of data not previously 

20 published for notice and comment shall 

21 also be exempt from such requirements if 

22 the Board has published notice in the Fed23 eral Register for comment on the addi24 tional data to be collected, at least 30 days 

25 before the initiation of data collection. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) FINAL ACTION.—Not later than 

2 180 days after publication of the assess3 ment plan in the Federal Register, the 

4 Board shall issue for notice and comment 

5 a proposal to amend or rescind the regula6 tion, or shall publish a notice that the 

7 Board has determined that no action will 

8 be taken on the regulation. Such a notice 

9 will be deemed a final agency action. 

10 ‘‘(5) COVERED REGULATIONS AND OTHER AC11 TIONS.—Solely as used in this subsection, the term 

12 ‘regulation’— 

13 ‘‘(A) means a statement of general applica14 bility and future effect that is designed to im15 plement, interpret, or prescribe law or policy, or 

16 to describe the procedure or practice require17 ments of the Board of Governors, including 

18 rules, orders of general applicability, interpre19 tive releases, and other statements of general 

20 applicability that the Board of Governors in21 tends to have the force and effect of law; and 

22 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

23 ‘‘(i) a regulation issued in accordance 

24 with the formal rulemaking provisions of 


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1 section 556 or 557 of title 5, United States 

2 Code; 

3 ‘‘(ii) a regulation that is limited to the 

4 organization, management, or personnel 

5 matters of the Board of Governors; 

6 ‘‘(iii) a regulation promulgated pursu7 ant to statutory authority that expressly 

8 prohibits compliance with this provision; or 

9 ‘‘(iv) a regulation that is certified by 

10 the Board of Governors to be an emer11 gency action, if such certification is pub12 lished in the Federal Register.’’. 

13 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec14 tion shall apply to the requirements regarding the conduct 

15 of monetary policy described in section 2. 

16 SEC. 9. SALARIES, FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES, AND OFFICE 

17 STAFF OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF 

18 THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 11 of the Federal Reserve 

20 Act (12 U.S.C. 248) is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating the second subsection (s) 

22 (relating to ‘‘Assessments, Fees, and Other Charges 

23 for Certain Companies’’) as subsection (t); and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub25 sections: 


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1 ‘‘(u) ETHICS STANDARDS FOR MEMBERS AND EM2 PLOYEES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITED AND RESTRICTED FINANCIAL

4 INTERESTS AND TRANSACTIONS.—The members and 

5 employees of the Board of Governors of the Federal 

6 Reserve System shall be subject to the provisions 

7 under section 4401.102 of title 5, Code of Federal 

8 Regulations, to the same extent as such provisions 

9 apply to an employee of the Securities and Exchange 

10 Commission. 

11 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF BROKERAGE ACCOUNTS

12 AND AVAILABILITY OF ACCOUNT STATEMENTS.—The 

13 members and employees of the Board of Governors 

14 of the Federal Reserve System shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) disclose all brokerage accounts that 

16 they maintain, as well as those in which they 

17 control trading or have a financial interest (in18 cluding managed accounts, trust accounts, in19 vestment club accounts, and the accounts of 

20 spouses or minor children who live with the 

21 member or employee); and 

22 ‘‘(B) with respect to any securities account 

23 that the member or employee is required to dis24 close to the Board of Governors, authorize their 


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1 brokers and dealers to send duplicate account 

2 statements directly to Board of Governors. 

3 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITIONS RELATED TO OUTSIDE EM4 PLOYMENT AND ACTIVITIES.—The members and em5 ployees of the Board of Governors of the Federal 

6 Reserve System shall be subject to the prohibitions 

7 related to outside employment and activities de8 scribed under section 4401.103(c) of title 5, Code of 

9 Federal Regulations, to the same extent as such pro10 hibitions apply to an employee of the Securities and 

11 Exchange Commission. 

12 ‘‘(4) ADDITIONAL ETHICS STANDARDS.—The 

13 members and employees of the Board of Governors 

14 of the Federal Reserve System shall be subject to— 

15 ‘‘(A) the employee responsibilities and con16 duct regulations of the Office of Personnel 

17 Management under part 735 of title 5, Code of 

18 Federal Regulations; 

19 ‘‘(B) the canons of ethics contained in sub20 part C of part 200 of title 17, Code of Federal 

21 Regulations, to the same extent as such subpart 

22 applies to the employees of the Securities and 

23 Exchange Commission; and 

24 ‘‘(C) the regulations concerning the con25 duct of members and employees and former 


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1 members and employees contained in subpart M 

2 of part 200 of title 17, Code of Federal Regula3 tions, to the same extent as such subpart ap4 plies to the employees of the Securities and Ex5 change Commission. 

6 ‘‘(v) DISCLOSURE OF STAFF SALARIES AND FINAN7 CIAL INFORMATION.—The Board of Governors of the Fed8 eral Reserve System shall make publicly available, on the 

9 website of the Board of Governors, a searchable database 

10 that contains the names of all members, officers, and em11 ployees of the Board of Governors who receive an annual 

12 salary in excess of the annual rate of basic pay for GS– 

13 15 of the General Schedule, and— 

14 ‘‘(1) the yearly salary information for such indi15 viduals, along with any nonsalary compensation re16 ceived by such individuals; and 

17 ‘‘(2) any financial disclosures required to be 

18 made by such individuals.’’. 

19 (b) OFFICE STAFF FOR EACH MEMBER OF THE

20 BOARD OF GOVERNORS.—Subsection (l) of section 11 of 

21 the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 248) is amended by 

22 adding at the end the following: ‘‘Each member of the 

23 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System may 

24 employ, at a minimum, 2 individuals, with such individuals 

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1 uals set by such member. A member may employ addi2 tional individuals as determined necessary by the Board 

3 of Governors.’’. 

4 SEC. 10. REQUIREMENTS FOR INTERNATIONAL PROC5 ESSES. 

6 (a) BOARD OF GOVERNORS REQUIREMENTS.—Sec7 tion 11 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 248), as 

8 amended by section 9 of this Act, is further amended by 

9 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

10 ‘‘(w) INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) NOTICE OF PROCESS; CONSULTATION.—At 

12 least 30 calendar days before any member or em13 ployee of the Board of Governors of the Federal Re14 serve System participates in a process of setting fi15 nancial standards as a part of any foreign or multi16 national entity, the Board of Governors shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of the process, includ18 ing the subject matter, scope, and goals of the 

19 process, to the Committee on Financial Services 

20 of the House of Representatives and the Com21 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

22 of the Senate; 

23 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

24 public, including on the website of the Board of 

25 Governors; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) solicit public comment, and consult 

2 with the committees described under subpara3 graph (A), with respect to the subject matter, 

4 scope, and goals of the process. 

5 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC REPORTS ON PROCESS.—After the 

6 end of any process described under paragraph (1), 

7 the Board of Governors shall issue a public report 

8 on the topics that were discussed during the process 

9 and any new or revised rulemakings or policy 

10 changes that the Board of Governors believes should 

11 be implemented as a result of the process. 

12 ‘‘(3) NOTICE OF AGREEMENTS; CONSULTA13 TION.—At least 90 calendar days before any mem14 ber or employee of the Board of Governors of the 

15 Federal Reserve System participates in a process of 

16 setting financial standards as a part of any foreign 

17 or multinational entity, the Board of Governors 

18 shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of agreement to the 

20 Committee on Financial Services of the House 

21 of Representatives and the Committee on Bank22 ing, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

23 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

24 public, including on the website of the Board of 

25 Governors; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) consult with the committees described 

2 under subparagraph (A) with respect to the na3 ture of the agreement and any anticipated ef4 fects such agreement will have on the economy. 

5 ‘‘(4) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub6 section, the term ‘process’ shall include any official 

7 proceeding or meeting on financial regulation of a 

8 recognized international organization with authority 

9 to set financial standards on a global or regional 

10 level, including the Financial Stability Board, the 

11 Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or a simi12 lar organization), and the International Association 

13 of Insurance Supervisors (or a similar organiza14 tion).’’. 

15 (b) FDIC REQUIREMENTS.—The Federal Deposit 

16 Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1811 et seq.) is amended by 

17 adding at the end the following new section: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 51. INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES. 

19 ‘‘(a) NOTICE OF PROCESS; CONSULTATION.—At least 

20 30 calendar days before the Board of Directors partici21 pates in a process of setting financial standards as a part 

22 of any foreign or multinational entity, the Board of Direc23 tors shall— 

24 ‘‘(1) issue a notice of the process, including the 

25 subject matter, scope, and goals of the process, to 


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1 the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 

2 Representatives and the Committee on Banking, 

3 Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

4 ‘‘(2) make such notice available to the public, 

5 including on the website of the Corporation; and 

6 ‘‘(3) solicit public comment, and consult with 

7 the committees described under paragraph (1), with 

8 respect to the subject matter, scope, and goals of the 

9 process. 

10 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC REPORTS ON PROCESS.—After the end 

11 of any process described under subsection (a), the Board 

12 of Directors shall issue a public report on the topics that 

13 were discussed at the process and any new or revised 

14 rulemakings or policy changes that the Board of Directors 

15 believes should be implemented as a result of the process. 

16 ‘‘(c) NOTICE OF AGREEMENTS; CONSULTATION.—At 

17 least 90 calendar days before the Board of Directors par18 ticipates in a process of setting financial standards as a 

19 part of any foreign or multinational entity, the Board of 

20 Directors shall— 

21 ‘‘(1) issue a notice of agreement to the Com22 mittee on Financial Services of the House of Rep23 resentatives and the Committee on Banking, Hous24 ing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 


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1 ‘‘(2) make such notice available to the public, 

2 including on the website of the Corporation; and 

3 ‘‘(3) consult with the committees described 

4 under paragraph (1) with respect to the nature of 

5 the agreement and any anticipated effects such 

6 agreement will have on the economy. 

7 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

8 term ‘process’ shall include any official proceeding or 

9 meeting on financial regulation of a recognized inter10 national organization with authority to set financial stand11 ards on a global or regional level, including the Financial 

12 Stability Board, the Basel Committee on Banking Super13 vision (or a similar organization), and the International 

14 Association of Insurance Supervisors (or a similar organi15 zation).’’. 

16 (c) TREASURY REQUIREMENTS.—Section 325 of title 

17 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

18 the following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(d) INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) NOTICE OF PROCESS; CONSULTATION.—At 

21 least 30 calendar days before the Secretary partici22 pates in a process of setting financial standards as 

23 a part of any foreign or multinational entity, the 

24 Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of the process, includ2 ing the subject matter, scope, and goals of the 

3 process, to the Committee on Financial Services 

4 of the House of Representatives and the Com5 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

6 of the Senate; 

7 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

8 public, including on the website of the Depart9 ment of the Treasury; and 

10 ‘‘(C) solicit public comment, and consult 

11 with the committees described under subpara12 graph (A), with respect to the subject matter, 

13 scope, and goals of the process. 

14 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC REPORTS ON PROCESS.—After the 

15 end of any process described under paragraph (1), 

16 the Secretary shall issue a public report on the top17 ics that were discussed at the process and any new 

18 or revised rulemakings or policy changes that the 

19 Secretary believes should be implemented as a result 

20 of the process. 

21 ‘‘(3) NOTICE OF AGREEMENTS; CONSULTA22 TION.—At least 90 calendar days before the Sec23 retary participates in a process of setting financial 

24 standards as a part of any foreign or multinational 

25 entity, the Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of agreement to the 

2 Committee on Financial Services of the House 

3 of Representatives and the Committee on Bank4 ing, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

5 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

6 public, including on the website of the Depart7 ment of the Treasury; and 

8 ‘‘(C) consult with the committees described 

9 under subparagraph (A) with respect to the na10 ture of the agreement and any anticipated ef11 fects such agreement will have on the economy. 

12 ‘‘(4) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub13 section, the term ‘process’ shall include any official 

14 proceeding or meeting on financial regulation of a 

15 recognized international organization with authority 

16 to set financial standards on a global or regional 

17 level, including the Financial Stability Board, the 

18 Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or a simi19 lar organization), and the International Association 

20 of Insurance Supervisors (or a similar organiza21 tion).’’. 

22 (d) OCC REQUIREMENTS.—Chapter one of title LXII 

23 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (12 U.S.C. 

24 21 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) by adding at the end the following new sec2 tion: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 5156B. INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES. 

4 ‘‘(a) NOTICE OF PROCESS; CONSULTATION.—At least 

5 30 calendar days before the Comptroller of the Currency 

6 participates in a process of setting financial standards as 

7 a part of any foreign or multinational entity, the Comp8 troller of the Currency shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) issue a notice of the process, including the 

10 subject matter, scope, and goals of the process, to 

11 the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 

12 Representatives and the Committee on Banking, 

13 Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

14 ‘‘(2) make such notice available to the public, 

15 including on the website of the Office of the Comp16 troller of the Currency; and 

17 ‘‘(3) solicit public comment, and consult with 

18 the committees described under paragraph (1), with 

19 respect to the subject matter, scope, and goals of the 

20 process. 

21 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC REPORTS ON PROCESS.—After the end 

22 of any process described under subsection (a), the Comp23 troller of the Currency shall issue a public report on the 

24 topics that were discussed at the process and any new or 

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1 troller of the Currency believes should be implemented as 

2 a result of the process. 

3 ‘‘(c) NOTICE OF AGREEMENTS; CONSULTATION.—At 

4 least 90 calendar days before the Comptroller of the Cur5 rency participates in a process of setting financial stand6 ards as a part of any foreign or multinational entity, the 

7 Board of Directors shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) issue a notice of agreement to the Com9 mittee on Financial Services of the House of Rep10 resentatives and the Committee on Banking, Hous11 ing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

12 ‘‘(2) make such notice available to the public, 

13 including on the website of the Office of the Comp14 troller of the Currency; and 

15 ‘‘(3) consult with the committees described 

16 under paragraph (1) with respect to the nature of 

17 the agreement and any anticipated effects such 

18 agreement will have on the economy. 

19 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

20 term ‘process’ shall include any official proceeding or 

21 meeting on financial regulation of a recognized inter22 national organization with authority to set financial stand23 ards on a global or regional level, including the Financial 

24 Stability Board, the Basel Committee on Banking Super25 vision (or a similar organization), and the International 


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1 Association of Insurance Supervisors (or a similar organi2 zation).’’; and 

3 (2) in the table of contents for such chapter, by 

4 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘5156B. International processes.’’. 

5 (e) SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION RE6 QUIREMENTS.—Section 4 of the Securities Exchange Act 

7 of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78d) is amended by adding at the end 

8 the following new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(j) INTERNATIONAL PROCESSES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) NOTICE OF PROCESS; CONSULTATION.—At 

11 least 30 calendar days before the Commission par12 ticipates in a process of setting financial standards 

13 as a part of any foreign or multinational entity, the 

14 Commission shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of the process, includ16 ing the subject matter, scope, and goals of the 

17 process, to the Committee on Financial Services 

18 of the House of Representatives and the Com19 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

20 of the Senate; 

21 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

22 public, including on the website of the Commis23 sion; and 

24 ‘‘(C) solicit public comment, and consult 

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1 graph (A), with respect to the subject matter, 

2 scope, and goals of the process. 

3 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC REPORTS ON PROCESS.—After the 

4 end of any process described under paragraph (1), 

5 the Commission shall issue a public report on the 

6 topics that were discussed at the process and any 

7 new or revised rulemakings or policy changes that 

8 the Commission believes should be implemented as a 

9 result of the process. 

10 ‘‘(3) NOTICE OF AGREEMENTS; CONSULTA11 TION.—At least 90 calendar days before the Com12 mission participates in a process of setting financial 

13 standards as a part of any foreign or multinational 

14 entity, the Commission shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) issue a notice of agreement to the 

16 Committee on Financial Services of the House 

17 of Representatives and the Committee on Bank18 ing, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

19 ‘‘(B) make such notice available to the 

20 public, including on the website of the Commis21 sion; and 

22 ‘‘(C) consult with the committees described 

23 under subparagraph (A) with respect to the na24 ture of the agreement and any anticipated ef25 fects such agreement will have on the economy. 


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1 ‘‘(4) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub2 section, the term ‘process’ shall include any official 

3 proceeding or meeting on financial regulation of a 

4 recognized international organization with authority 

5 to set financial standards on a global or regional 

6 level, including the Financial Stability Board, the 

7 Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or a simi8 lar organization), and the International Association 

9 of Insurance Supervisors (or a similar organiza10 tion).’’. 

11 SEC. 11. AMENDMENTS TO POWERS OF THE BOARD OF 

12 GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYS13 TEM. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 13(3) of the Federal Re15 serve Act (12 U.S.C. 343(3)) is amended— 

16 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘that pose a threat to the 

18 financial stability of the United States’’ after 

19 ‘‘unusual and exigent circumstances’’; and 

20 (B) by inserting ‘‘and by the affirmative 

21 vote of not less than nine presidents of the Fed22 eral reserve banks’’ after ‘‘five members’’; 

23 (2) in subparagraph (B)— 

24 (A) in clause (i), by inserting at the end 

25 the following: ‘‘Federal reserve banks may not 


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1 accept equity securities issued by the recipient 

2 of any loan or other financial assistance under 

3 this paragraph as collateral. Not later than 6 

4 months after the date of enactment of this sen5 tence, the Board shall, by rule, establish— 

6 ‘‘(I) a method for determining 

7 the sufficiency of the collateral re8 quired under this paragraph; 

9 ‘‘(II) acceptable classes of collat10 eral; 

11 ‘‘(III) the amount of any dis12 count of such value that the Federal 

13 reserve banks will apply for purposes 

14 of calculating the sufficiency of collat15 eral under this paragraph; and 

16 ‘‘(IV) a method for obtaining 

17 independent appraisals of the value of 

18 collateral the Federal reserve banks 

19 receive.’’; and 

20 (B) in clause (ii)— 

21 (i) by striking the second sentence; 

22 and 

23 (ii) by inserting after the first sen24 tence the following: ‘‘A borrower shall not 

25 be eligible to borrow from any emergency 


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1 lending program or facility unless the 

2 Board and all federal banking regulators 

3 with jurisdiction over the borrower certify 

4 that, at the time the borrower initially bor5 rows under the program or facility, the 

6 borrower is not insolvent.’’; 

7 (3) by inserting ‘‘financial institution’’ before 

8 ‘‘participant’’ each place such term appears; 

9 (4) in subparagraph (D)(i), by inserting ‘‘finan10 cial institution’’ before ‘‘participants’’; and 

11 (5) by adding at the end the following new sub12 paragraphs: 

13 ‘‘(F) PENALTY RATE.— 

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 

15 months after the date of enactment of this 

16 subparagraph, the Board shall, with re17 spect to a recipient of any loan or other fi18 nancial assistance under this paragraph, 

19 establish by rule a minimum interest rate 

20 on the principal amount of any loan or 

21 other financial assistance. 

22 ‘‘(ii) MINIMUM INTEREST RATE DE23 FINED.—In this subparagraph, the term 

24 ‘minimum interest rate’ shall mean the 

25 sum of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the average of the secondary 

2 discount rate of all Federal Reserve 

3 banks over the most recent 90-day pe4 riod; and 

5 ‘‘(II) the average of the dif6 ference between a distressed corporate 

7 bond yield index (as defined by rule of 

8 the Board) and a bond yield index of 

9 debt issued by the United States (as 

10 defined by rule of the Board) over the 

11 most recent 90-day period. 

12 ‘‘(G) FINANCIAL INSTITUTION PARTICI13 PANT DEFINED.—For purposes of this para14 graph, the term ‘financial institution partici15 pant’— 

16 ‘‘(i) means a company that is pre17 dominantly engaged in financial activities 

18 (as defined in section 102(a) of the Dodd19 Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer 

20 Protection Act (12 U.S.C. 5311(a))); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) does not include an agency de22 scribed in subparagraph (W) of section 

23 5312(a)(2) of title 31, United States Code, 

24 or an entity controlled or sponsored by 

25 such an agency.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 11(r)(2)(A) of such Act is amended— 

3 (1) in clause (ii)(IV), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

4 inserting a semicolon; 

5 (2) in clause (iii), by striking the period at the 

6 end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

8 clause: 

9 ‘‘(iv) the available members secure the affirma10 tive vote of not less than nine presidents of the Fed11 eral reserve banks.’’. 

12 SEC. 12. INTEREST RATES ON BALANCES MAINTAINED AT A 

13 FEDERAL RESERVE BANK BY DEPOSITORY 

14 INSTITUTIONS ESTABLISHED BY FEDERAL 

15 OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE. 

16 Subparagraph (A) of section 19(b)(12) of the Federal 

17 Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 461(b)(12)(A)) is amended by in18 serting ‘‘established by the Federal Open Market Com19 mittee’’ after ‘‘rate or rates’’. 

20 SEC. 13. AUDIT REFORM AND TRANSPARENCY FOR THE 

21 BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RE22 SERVE SYSTEM. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 714 of 

24 title 31, United States Code, or any other provision of law, 

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1 ally complete an audit of the Board of Governors of the 

2 Federal Reserve System and the Federal reserve banks 

3 under subsection (b) of such section 714 within 12 months 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

5 (b) REPORT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

7 each audit required pursuant to subsection (a) is 

8 completed, the Comptroller General— 

9 (A) shall submit to Congress a report on 

10 such audit; and 

11 (B) shall make such report available to the 

12 Speaker of the House, the majority and minor13 ity leaders of the House of Representatives, the 

14 majority and minority leaders of the Senate, the 

15 Chairman and Ranking Member of the com16 mittee and each subcommittee of jurisdiction in 

17 the House of Representatives and the Senate, 

18 and any other Member of Congress who re19 quests the report. 

20 (2) CONTENTS.—The report under paragraph 

21 (1) shall include a detailed description of the find22 ings and conclusion of the Comptroller General with 

23 respect to the audit that is the subject of the report, 

24 together with such recommendations for legislative 


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1 or administrative action as the Comptroller General 

2 may determine to be appropriate. 

3 (c) REPEAL OF CERTAIN LIMITATIONS.—Subsection 

4 (b) of section 714 of title 31, United States Code, is 

5 amended by striking the second sentence. 

6 (d) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 714 of title 31, 

8 United States Code, is amended— 

9 (A) in subsection (d)(3), by striking ‘‘or 

10 (f)’’ each place such term appears; 

11 (B) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘the 

12 third undesignated paragraph of section 13’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘section 13(3)’’; and 

14 (C) by striking subsection (f). 

15 (2) FEDERAL RESERVE ACT.—Subsection (s) 

16 (relating to ‘‘Federal Reserve Transparency and Re17 lease of Information’’) of section 11 of the Federal 

18 Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 248) is amended— 

19 (A) in paragraph (4)(A), by striking ‘‘has 

20 the same meaning as in section 714(f)(1)(A) of 

21 title 31, United States Code’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘means a program or facility, including any 

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1 eral reserve bank, authorized by the Board of 

2 Governors under section 13(3), that is not sub3 ject to audit under section 714(e) of title 31, 

4 United States Code’’; 

5 (B) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘or in 

6 section 714(f)(3)(C) of title 31, United States 

7 Code, the information described in paragraph 

8 (1) and information concerning the transactions 

9 described in section 714(f) of such title,’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘the information described in para11 graph (1)’’; and 

12 (C) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘and sec13 tion 13(3)(C), section 714(f)(3)(C) of title 31, 

14 United States Code, and’’ and inserting ‘‘, sec15 tion 13(3)(C), and’’. 

16 SEC. 14. REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR EXPORT-IMPORT 

17 BANK. 

18 The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Sys19 tem shall include, as part of the monthly Federal Reserve 

20 statistical release titled ‘‘Industrial Production or Capac21 ity Utilization’’ (or any successor release), an analysis 

22 of— 

23 (1) the impact on the index described in the 

24 statistical release due to the operation of the Export25 Import Bank; and 


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1 (2) the amount of foreign industrial production 

2 supported by foreign export credit agencies, using 

3 the same method used to measure industrial produc4 tion in the statistical release and scaled to be com5 parable to the industrial production measurement 

6 for the United States. 

7 SEC. 15. MEMBERSHIP OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE 

8 FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS. 

9 Section 4 of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 302) 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) in the eleventh undesignated paragraph (re12 lating to Class B), by striking ‘‘and consumers’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘consumers, and traditionally underserved 

14 communities and populations’’; and 

15 (2) in the twelfth undesignated paragraph (re16 lating to Class C), by striking ‘‘and consumers’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘consumers, and traditionally underserved 

18 communities and populations’’. 

19 SEC. 16. ESTABLISHMENT OF A CENTENNIAL MONETARY 

20 COMMISSION. 

21 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 

22 ‘‘Centennial Monetary Commission Act of 2015’’. 

23 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

24 (1) The Constitution endows Congress with the 

25 power ‘‘to coin money, regulate the value thereof’’. 


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1 (2) Following the financial crisis known as the 

2 Panic of 1907, Congress established the National 

3 Monetary Commission to provide recommendations 

4 for the reform of the financial and monetary systems 

5 of the United States. 

6 (3) Incorporating several of the recommenda7 tions of the National Monetary Commission, Con8 gress created the Federal Reserve System in 1913. 

9 As currently organized, the Federal Reserve System 

10 consists of the Board of Governors in Washington, 

11 District of Columbia, and the Federal Reserve 

12 Banks organized into 12 districts around the United 

13 States. The stockholders of the 12 Federal Reserve 

14 Banks include national and certain State-chartered 

15 commercial banks, which operate on a fractional re16 serve basis. 

17 (4) Originally, Congress gave the Federal Re18 serve System a monetary mandate to provide an 

19 elastic currency, within the context of a gold stand20 ard, in response to seasonal fluctuations in the de21 mand for currency. 

22 (5) Congress also gave the Federal Reserve 

23 System a financial stability mandate to serve as the 

24 lender of last resort to solvent but illiquid banks 

25 during a financial crisis. 


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1 (6) In 1977, Congress changed the monetary 

2 mandate of the Federal Reserve System to a dual 

3 mandate for maximum employment and stable 

4 prices. 

5 (7) Empirical studies and historical evidence, 

6 both within the United States and in other coun7 tries, demonstrate that price stability is desirable be8 cause both inflation and deflation damage the econ9 omy. 

10 (8) The economic challenge of recent years— 

11 most notably the bursting of the housing bubble, the 

12 financial crisis of 2008, and the ensuing anemic re13 covery—have occurred at great cost in terms of lost 

14 jobs and output. 

15 (9) Policymakers are reexamining the structure 

16 and functioning of financial institutions and markets 

17 to determine what, if any, changes need to be made 

18 to place the financial system on a stronger, more 

19 sustainable path going forward. 

20 (10) The Federal Reserve System has taken ex21 traordinary actions in response to the recent eco22 nomic challenges. 

23 (11) The Federal Open Market Committee has 

24 engaged in multiple rounds of quantitative easing, 

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1 kets, while committing to holding short-term interest 

2 rates low for a seemingly indefinite period, and pur3 suing a policy of credit allocation by purchasing 

4 Federal agency debt and mortgage-backed securities. 

5 (12) In the wake of the recent extraordinary ac6 tions of the Federal Reserve System, Congress—con7 sistent with its constitutional responsibilities and as 

8 it has done periodically throughout the history of the 

9 United States—has once again renewed its examina10 tion of monetary policy. 

11 (13) Central in such examination has been a re12 newed look at what is the most proper mandate for 

13 the Federal Reserve System to conduct monetary 

14 policy in the 21st century. 

15 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF A CENTENNIAL MONETARY

16 COMMISSION.—There is established a commission to be 

17 known as the ‘‘Centennial Monetary Commission’’ (in this 

18 section referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

19 (d) STUDY AND REPORT ON MONETARY POLICY.— 

20 (1) STUDY.—The Commission shall— 

21 (A) examine how United States monetary 

22 policy since the creation of the Board of Gov23 ernors of the Federal Reserve System in 1913 

24 has affected the performance of the United 


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1 States economy in terms of output, employ2 ment, prices, and financial stability over time; 

3 (B) evaluate various operational regimes 

4 under which the Board of Governors of the 

5 Federal Reserve System and the Federal Open 

6 Market Committee may conduct monetary pol7 icy in terms achieving the maximum sustainable 

8 level of output and employment and price sta9 bility over the long term, including— 

10 (i) discretion in determining monetary 

11 policy without an operational regime; 

12 (ii) price level targeting; 

13 (iii) inflation rate targeting; 

14 (iv) nominal gross domestic product 

15 targeting (both level and growth rate); 

16 (v) the use of monetary policy rules; 

17 and 

18 (vi) the gold standard; 

19 (C) evaluate the use of macro-prudential 

20 supervision and regulation as a tool of mone21 tary policy in terms of achieving the maximum 

22 sustainable level of output and employment and 

23 price stability over the long term; 

24 (D) evaluate the use of the lender-of-last25 resort function of the Board of Governors of 


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1 the Federal Reserve System as a tool of mone2 tary policy in terms of achieving the maximum 

3 sustainable level of output and employment and 

4 price stability over the long term; 

5 (E) recommend a course for United States 

6 monetary policy going forward, including— 

7 (i) the legislative mandate; 

8 (ii) the operational regime; 

9 (iii) the securities used in open mar10 ket operations; and 

11 (iv) transparency issues; and 

12 (F) consider the effects of the GDP output 

13 and employment targets of the ‘‘dual mandate’’ 

14 (both from the creation of the dual mandate in 

15 1977 until the present time and estimates of 

16 the future effect of the dual mandate ) on— 

17 (i) United States economic activity; 

18 (ii) Federal Reserve actions; and 

19 (iii) Federal debt. 

20 (2) REPORT.—Not later than December 1, 

21 2016, the Commission shall submit to Congress and 

22 make publicly available a report containing a state23 ment of the findings and conclusions of the Commis24 sion in carrying out the study under paragraph (1), 

25 together with the recommendations the Commission 


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1 considers appropriate. In making such report, the 

2 Commission shall specifically report on the consider3 ations required under paragraph (1)(F). 

4 (e) MEMBERSHIP.— 

5 (1) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.— 

6 (A) APPOINTED VOTING MEMBERS.—The 

7 Commission shall contain 12 voting members as 

8 follows: 

9 (i) Six members appointed by the 

10 Speaker of the House of Representatives, 

11 with four members from the majority party 

12 and two members from the minority party. 

13 (ii) Six members appointed by the 

14 President Pro Tempore of the Senate, with 

15 four members from the majority party and 

16 two members from the minority party. 

17 (B) CHAIRMAN.—The Speaker of the 

18 House of Representatives and the majority 

19 leader of the Senate shall jointly designate one 

20 of the members of the Commission as Chair21 man. 

22 (C) NON-VOTING MEMBERS.—The Com23 mission shall contain 2 non-voting members as 

24 follows: 


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1 (i) One member appointed by the Sec2 retary of the Treasury. 

3 (ii) One member who is the president 

4 of a district Federal reserve bank ap5 pointed by the Chair of the Board of Gov6 ernors of the Federal Reserve System. 

7 (2) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—Each member 

8 shall be appointed for the life of the Commission. 

9 (3) TIMING OF APPOINTMENT.—All members of 

10 the Commission shall be appointed not later than 30 

11 days after the date of the enactment of this section. 

12 (4) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission 

13 shall not affect its powers, and shall be filled in the 

14 manner in which the original appointment was 

15 made. 

16 (5) MEETINGS.— 

17 (A) INITIAL MEETING.—The Commission 

18 shall hold its initial meeting and begin the oper19 ations of the Commission as soon as is prac20 ticable. 

21 (B) FURTHER MEETINGS.—The Commis22 sion shall meet upon the call of the Chair or a 

23 majority of its members. 


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1 (6) QUORUM.—Seven voting members of the 

2 Commission shall constitute a quorum but a lesser 

3 number may hold hearings. 

4 (7) MEMBER OF CONGRESS DEFINED.—In this 

5 subsection, the term ‘‘Member of Congress’’ means 

6 a Senator or a Representative in, or Delegate or 

7 Resident Commissioner to, the Congress. 

8 (f) POWERS.— 

9 (1) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commis10 sion or, on the authority of the Commission, any 

11 subcommittee or member thereof, may, for the pur12 pose of carrying out this section, hold hearings, sit 

13 and act at times and places, take testimony, receive 

14 evidence, or administer oaths as the Commission or 

15 such subcommittee or member thereof considers ap16 propriate. 

17 (2) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—To the extent or 

18 in the amounts provided in advance in appropriation 

19 Acts, the Commission may contract with and com20 pensate government and private agencies or persons 

21 to enable the Commission to discharge its duties 

22 under this section, without regard to section 3709 of 

23 the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5). 

24 (3) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission is au2 thorized to secure directly from any executive 

3 department, bureau, agency, board, commission, 

4 office, independent establishment, or instrumen5 tality of the Government, any information, in6 cluding suggestions, estimates, or statistics, for 

7 the purposes of this section. 

8 (B) REQUESTING OFFICIAL DATA.—The 

9 head of such department, bureau, agency, 

10 board, commission, office, independent estab11 lishment, or instrumentality of the government 

12 shall, to the extent authorized by law, furnish 

13 such information upon request made by— 

14 (i) the Chair; 

15 (ii) the Chair of any subcommittee 

16 created by a majority of the Commission; 

17 or 

18 (iii) any member of the Commission 

19 designated by a majority of the commission 

20 to request such information. 

21 (4) ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

22 (A) GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRA23 TION.—The Administrator of General Services 

24 shall provide to the Commission on a reimburs25 able basis administrative support and other 


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1 services for the performance of the functions of 

2 the Commission. 

3 (B) OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND AGEN4 CIES.—In addition to the assistance prescribed 

5 in subparagraph (A), at the request of the 

6 Commission, departments and agencies of the 

7 United States shall provide such services, funds, 

8 facilities, staff, and other support services as 

9 may be authorized by law. 

10 (5) POSTAL SERVICE.—The Commission may 

11 use the United States mails in the same manner and 

12 under the same conditions as other departments and 

13 agencies of the United States. 

14 (g) COMMISSION PERSONNEL.— 

15 (1) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION OF

16 STAFF.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to rules pre18 scribed by the Commission, the Chair may ap19 point and fix the pay of the executive director 

20 and other personnel as the Chair considers ap21 propriate. 

22 (B) APPLICABILITY OF CIVIL SERVICE

23 LAWS.—The staff of the Commission may be 

24 appointed without regard to the provisions of 

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1 ments in the competitive service, and may be 

2 paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 

3 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of that 

4 title relating to classification and General 

5 Schedule pay rates, except that an individual so 

6 appointed may not receive pay in excess of level 

7 V of the Executive Schedule. 

8 (2) CONSULTANTS.—The Commission may pro9 cure temporary and intermittent services under sec10 tion 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but at 

11 rates for individuals not to exceed the daily equiva12 lent of the rate of pay for a person occupying a posi13 tion at level IV of the Executive Schedule. 

14 (3) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon re15 quest of the Commission, the head of any Federal 

16 department or agency may detail, on a reimbursable 

17 basis, any of the personnel of such department or 

18 agency to the Commission to assist it in carrying out 

19 its duties under this section. 

20 (h) TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall termi22 nate on June 1, 2017. 

23 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES BEFORE TER24 MINATION.—The Commission may use the period be25 tween the submission of its report and its termiVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:46 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3189.RFS H3189

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1 nation for the purpose of concluding its activities, 

2 including providing testimony to the committee of 

3 Congress concerning its report. 

4 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

5 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

6 $1,000,000, which shall remain available until the date on 

7 which the Commission terminates. 

8 SEC. 17. ELIMINATION OF SURPLUS FUNDS OF FEDERAL 

9 RESERVE BANKS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7 of the Federal Reserve 

11 Act (12 U.S.C. 289 et seq.) is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)— 

13 (A) in the heading of such subsection, by 

14 striking ‘‘AND SURPLUS FUNDS’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘depos16 ited in the surplus fund of the bank’’ and in17 serting ‘‘transferred to the Board of Governors 

18 of the Federal Reserve System for transfer to 

19 the Secretary of the Treasury for deposit in the 

20 general fund of the Treasury’’; and 

21 (C) by striking the first subsection (b) (re22 lating to a transfer for fiscal year 2000). 

23 (b) TRANSFER TO THE TREASURY.—The Federal re24 serve banks shall transfer all of the funds of the surplus 

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1 eral Reserve System for transfer to the Secretary of the 

2 Treasury for deposit in the general fund of the Treasury. 

3 SEC. 18. PUBLIC TRANSCRIPTS OF FOMC MEETINGS. 

4 Section 12A of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 

5 263), as amended by this Act, is further amended by add6 ing at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC TRANSCRIPTS OF MEETINGS.—The 

8 Committee shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) record all meetings of the Committee; and 

10 ‘‘(2) make the full transcript of such meetings 

11 available to the public.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives November 19, 

2015. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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