U.S. senators announce bipartisan push to change how Fed watchdog selected
Source: Reuters
May 7, 2025 12:24 PM EDT Updated 8 hours ago
May 6 (Reuters) - Two senators announced legislation on Tuesday that would change how the Federal Reserve’s in-house watchdog is selected.
In a press release Senator Rick Scott, a Republican, and Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, said their bill would require the Federal Reserve’s inspector general, or IG, to be named by the president and confirmed by the Senate, breaking from the current practice where the watchdog is selected to serve by the chair of the Federal Reserve.
The senators say the fact the IG is selected by the same person whose agency he oversees “poses serious conflicts of interest,” according to a press release. The legislation comes as the Fed’s most recent IG, Mark Bialek, resigned earlier this year, in a development first reported by Politico. The senators’ press release said Bialek “failed to hold Federal Reserve employees accountable amid ethics concerns, regulatory failures, and bank collapses.”
The Fed’s IG did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Fed spokesperson acknowledged getting a letter from the senators over the IG selection process and said the central bank plans to respond. The Fed’s Office of the Inspector General is responsible for overseeing the Fed, as well as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It conducts audits, investigations and makes recommendations for the two agencies.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-senators-announce-bipartisan-push-change-how-fed-watchdog-selected-2025-05-06/
Link to draft LEGISLATION (PDF) - https://www.rickscott.senate.gov/services/files/A90C5B39-C1A7-4FF6-B9FB-E1DEB2F6D21D
Link to LETTER (PDF) - https://www.banking.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/20250506_letter_to_powell_re_fed_ig_warren_scott_final.pdf
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