normalization in 2023 would, under these conditions, be entirely consistent with our new flexible average inflation targeting framework. 10 i note that under the june sep median of modal projections, annualized the labor market conditions indicators can be found on the kansas city fed ’ s website at https : / / www. kansascityfed. org / data - and - trends / labor - market - conditions - indicators. the fed staff ’ s cie index — which is now updated quarterly on the board ’ s website — is a relevant indicator that this goal is being met. see ahn and fulton ( 2020, 2021 ). - 7pce inflation since the new framework was adopted in august 2020 is projected to average 2. 6 percent through year - end 2022 and 2. 5 percent through year - end 2023. 11 in the context of our new framework, it is important to note that while the elb can be a constraint on monetary policy, the elb is not a constraint on fiscal policy, and appropriate monetary policy under our new framework, to me, must — and certainly can — incorporate this reality. indeed, under present circumstances, i judge that the support to aggregate demand from fiscal policy — including the more than $ 2 trillion in accumulated excess savings accruing from ( as yet ) unspent transfer payments — in tandem with appropriate monetary policy, can fully offset the constraint, highlighted in our statement on longer - run goals and monetary policy strategy, that the elb imposes on the ability of an inflation - targeting monetary policy, acting on its own and in the absence of sufficient fiscal support, to restore, following a recession, maximum employment and price stability while keeping inflation expectations well anchored at the 2 percent longerrun goal. 12 before i conclude, let me say a few words about our treasury and mortgagebacked securities ( mbs ) purchase programs. in our december 2020 fomc statement, we indicated, and have reaffirmed since then, that we will maintain the pace of treasury and mbs purchases at $ 80 billion and $ 40 billion per month, respectively, until “ substantial further progress ” has been made toward our maximum - employment and price - stability goals. since then, the economy has made progress toward these goals. at the corresponding annualized average rate of pce inflation since february 2020 under the sep median projections is 2. 3 percent through 2022 and 2023. for a theoretical analysis of the fiscal and monetary policy mix at the elb

bis central bankers ’ speeches i believe bankers come to fully understand supervisory expectations over time, as their experience grows. but when something radically changes the supervisory landscape such as new regulations, drastic changes in the economic environment, or reassignment of regulatory authority, more direct outreach might be needed. for many years, the reserve banks have maintained local training and outreach programs for banks in their districts. for instance, the popular “ ask the fed ” calls conducted by the federal reserve bank of st. louis provide bankers with an opportunity to hear federal reserve staff discuss recent policy initiatives and to be updated on the most common problems that examiners see in the field. the calls also provide an informal setting for bankers to ask questions on issues of concern. in addition, consumer compliance webinars have provided a forum for the federal reserve to discuss emerging consumer compliance issues and to answer questions from webinar participants directly. 3 these initiatives have been so successful that a planning group is studying options for leveraging these efforts in a coordinated, national initiative to improve communication of relevant information to community banks supervised by the federal reserve. despite all efforts to communicate supervisory expectations, there are inevitably disagreements between banks and their examiners about examination findings. the federal reserve ombudsman actively works with banks that have concerns about their examinations or that wish to appeal an examination finding. the ombudsman works independently from the bank supervision chain of command and has broad authority to mediate complaints, including the authority to refer matters to committees of the board. the ombudsman ’ s office also has a follow - up program in place to protect the banks that contact it from retaliation. and the ombudsman tracks the nature and source of complaints in order to identify potential systemic problems. 4 balancing safety and soundness with credit availability since 2008, many banks have seen their assets ’ quality criticized and their ratings downgraded. this is not surprising given the severity of the economic downturn and the effect it had on the quality of bank assets. however, some bankers complain that examiners also tightened their approach. indeed, we repeatedly hear that fear of examiner criticism is one of the reasons banks hesitate to lend to small businesses. we take these concerns seriously. in response, we are actively communicating with examiners and have stepped up examiner training to ensure that supervision in the field is consistent with policy. at the same time, i think it is important to continually reevaluate our supervisory policies and procedures to ensure that the policies themselves are