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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said he plans to remain a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors after his term as chairman ends next month, while emphasizing he will not act as a “shadow Fed chair.” Powell made the remarks during his final news conference after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted to hold interest rates steady in the current range of 3.5% to 3.75%.
Powell said he intends to continue serving on the Board of Governors for “a period of time to be determined.” He was asked how he would conduct himself as a governor without exerting outsized influence over the process.
“That’s just something I would never do, the shadow chair thing,” Powell said. “I’m going back to being a governor. I respect the role of chair.” He added that he previously served as a governor for six years and understands the importance of the chair’s role in building consensus.
Powell said he plans to be “a very constructive participant” in the decision-making process, describing the chair as having “one vote plus the ability to develop consensus.” He said he does not want to add unnecessarily to the process and will support the chair’s direction when possible.
In his opening remarks, Powell said he plans to “keep a low profile as a governor,” noting that only one person serves as chair at a time. He said that once Kevin Warsh is confirmed and sworn in, Warsh would become chair of the Federal Reserve Board and would also be elected to chair the FOMC by his fellow board members.
Powell said he will remain on the Board of Governors until an investigation is closed “with finality and transparency.” He said that while he had planned to retire at the end of his chairmanship, a U.S. Department of Justice investigation launched by the Trump administration led him to change course due to concerns about threats to the Fed’s independence from political pressure.
Powell said the investigation was politically motivated. In January, U.S. District Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro issued subpoenas to the Fed as part of a criminal investigation into whether Powell misled Congress about the Fed’s costly renovation project at its Washington, D.C., headquarters.
Powell said courts quashed the DOJ subpoenas, describing them as a “pretext” to pressure him into cutting interest rates or stepping down.
Powell said he is staying because of actions taken in the past three months and that he does not intend to interfere with Fed operations once Warsh becomes chair.
“I’m literally staying because of the actions that have been taken,” Powell said. “I had long planned to be retiring… and you know, the things that have happened, really in the last three months, left me no choice but to stay until I see them through.”
He added that he does not see how his continued role would interfere, saying, “My intention is not to interfere.”
Powell’s term as a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors runs until January 31, 2028. He did not say whether he would consider staying for the remainder of his term, and he emphasized he will leave when the investigation is “well and truly over with finality and transparency,” adding that he will depart when he believes it is appropriate.
Powell said he would not be the first former Fed chair to remain as a governor after his chairmanship ends. He cited Marriner Eccles, who served as Fed chair from 1934 to 1948 and then remained on the Board of Governors until 1951.
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