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What is the Federal Open Market Committee, and what does it do?
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is the monetary policymaking body of the Federal Reserve System. It is responsible for formulation of a monetary policy designed to promote economic growth, full employment, stable prices, and a sustainable pattern of international trade and payments.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is the monetary policymaking body of the Federal Reserve System. It is responsible for formulation of a monetary policy designed to promote economic growth, full employment, stable prices, and a sustainable pattern of international trade and payments.
The FOMC sets monetary policy by specifying the short-term objective for open market operations-- purchases and sales of U.S. government and federal agency securities. Open market operations, the principal tool of monetary policy, affect the provision of reserves to depository institutions and, in turn, the cost and availability of money and credit in the U.S. economy. Currently, the objective is a target level for the federal funds rate (the rate that depository institutions charge on overnight sales of immediately available funds among themselves).
The FOMC also directs Federal Reserve operations in foreign currencies; such operations are coordinated with the U.S. Treasury, which has responsibility for formulating U.S. policies regarding the exchange value of the dollar.
For more information on the FOMC, see Monetary Policy: Federal Open Market
Committee and The Structure of the Federal Reserve
System on the Board of Governors' web site.
Who are the members of the FOMC?
The Federal Open Market Committee consists of twelve voting members: the seven members of the Board of Governors and five of the twelve Federal Reserve Bank presidents. The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York serves on a continuous basis; the presidents of the other Reserve Banks serve one-year terms on a rotating basis beginning on January 1 of each year. The rotating seats are filled from the following four groups of Banks, one Bank president from each group: Boston, Philadelphia, and Richmond; Cleveland and Chicago; Atlanta, St. Louis, and Dallas; and Minneapolis, Kansas City, and San Francisco.
The Federal Open Market Committee consists of twelve voting members: the seven members of the Board of Governors and five of the twelve Federal Reserve Bank presidents. The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York serves on a continuous basis; the presidents of the other Reserve Banks serve one-year terms on a rotating basis beginning on January 1 of each year. The rotating seats are filled from the following four groups of Banks, one Bank president from each group: Boston, Philadelphia, and Richmond; Cleveland and Chicago; Atlanta, St. Louis, and Dallas; and Minneapolis, Kansas City, and San Francisco.
All of the Reserve Bank presidents, even those who are not currently voting members, attend FOMC meetings, participate in the discussions, and contribute to the assessment of the economy and of policy options.
Current members of the FOMC.
When is the next FOMC meeting?
The calendar for FOMC meetings is available on the Board of Governors' web site.
The calendar for FOMC meetings is available on the Board of Governors' web site.
Why are some FOMC meetings scheduled for two days?
The FOMC meets eight times a year, usually for one day. The meetings in January-February and June-July are two-day meetings. At the two-day meetings, the FOMC members and the nonvoting Federal Reserve Bank presidents provide individual, longer-run projections of the real and nominal growth of the gross domestic product, the rate of unemployment, and the rate of inflation for the current year and the year ahead. The central tendencies of the projections are included in the Monetary Policy Report delivered to Congress each February and July. At the two- day meetings, the FOMC also considers longer-run strategies for monetary policy and, at the first meeting of the year, deals with administrative matters.
The FOMC meets eight times a year, usually for one day. The meetings in January-February and June-July are two-day meetings. At the two-day meetings, the FOMC members and the nonvoting Federal Reserve Bank presidents provide individual, longer-run projections of the real and nominal growth of the gross domestic product, the rate of unemployment, and the rate of inflation for the current year and the year ahead. The central tendencies of the projections are included in the Monetary Policy Report delivered to Congress each February and July. At the two- day meetings, the FOMC also considers longer-run strategies for monetary policy and, at the first meeting of the year, deals with administrative matters.
Does the FOMC make public its objectives for monetary policy?
Yes, a statement is released at 2:15 p.m. on the final day of each FOMC meeting. Statements can be found at http://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy /fomccalendars.htm.
Yes, a statement is released at 2:15 p.m. on the final day of each FOMC meeting. Statements can be found at http://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy /fomccalendars.htm.
Are minutes and transcripts of FOMC meetings available?
Yes. The minutes of each FOMC meeting are released to the public on the Thursday following the next regularly scheduled meeting. The lag between a meeting and the release of the minutes is about six weeks. Transcripts of meetings for an entire year are released to the public with a five-year lag.
Yes. The minutes of each FOMC meeting are released to the public on the Thursday following the next regularly scheduled meeting. The lag between a meeting and the release of the minutes is about six weeks. Transcripts of meetings for an entire year are released to the public with a five-year lag.
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