Bill That Would Audit The Federal Reserve Passes House

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By Cornelius Nunev


Many people are not enamored of the Federal reserve, the independent government agency that determines the country's monetary policy and sets interest rates. The House of Representatives has just approved a stringent bill to audit the Fed, though it isn't likely to go anywhere.

Get audit getting support

The Fed, since its creation in 1913, has held sway in ways that many do not realize impact daily life. It is the country's central bank, and controls the country's cash supply, inflation rates and, through that, the expenses of lending cash. In short, how much a dollar is worth and the way expensive it is for banks to lend mortgages, installment loans and so forth, is part of what the Fed controls, among other things.

As an "independent government bureau," the Fed is still part of the government as a private company. Most people think it should be required to open its books to the public since there is not a ton of info made accessible to the public about its dealings. Citizens and legislators all support a bill that would require an audit of the Fed.

Getting house approval

More government agencies might have to start showing their finances to the public soon since the House of Representatives just approved the bill 327 to 98. The bill would require the Federal reserve to open its books specifically. The Fed has been criticized by Representative Ron Paul of Texas who might have been anticipated to do it since he has not supported the law for some time now.

The bureau already has an internal audit performed annually, according to CNN. One of the most recent was by Deloitte and Touche, one of the "Big Four" auditing firms. The agency also publishes its balance sheet online every week. However, the point is more to get urgent access to Fed policy decisions, specifically monetary policy decisions. Records of those meetings, where the bureau decides the inflation rate for American currency, take a bit longer to come out. It takes three weeks for meeting minutes to be released. The transcripts take five years.

An enormous issue according to Bernanke

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has often warned, according to Bloomberg, that an "audit the Fed" law that goes too far will place the agency under direct Congressional control, which could possibly put the bureau at risk of manipulation for political purposes. Part and parcel to the agency's creation was that it remains independent of Congress, which is often as fickle as public opinion. He does, however, advocate for greater transparency.

Representative Barney Frank does not think the law will go anywhere, according to Bloomberg, and it will probably not become the law.




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