2023 Testimony
Vice Chair for Supervision Michael S. Barr
Supervision and Regulation
November 2023
("As for other material rulemakings, the agencies recently finalized a rule that strengthens and modernizes the regulations that implement the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The revised rule will better encourage banks to help meet the credit needs of their entire communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
The final rule is the result of many years of public engagement and several rounds of rulemaking by the Board, FDIC, and OCC. I appreciate the level of engagement from both banks and community and civil rights stakeholders. The many perspectives we have heard have assisted the agencies in further refining the approach from the proposed to final rule.
Key elements of the final rule include supporting minority depository institutions and community development financial institutions as well as adapting the rule to mobile and online banking. Fair lending is safe and sound lending. The new CRA regulations will encourage financial inclusion in important ways, helping to make the financial system safer and fairer.")
Chair Jerome H. Powell
Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress
June 2023
("The labor market remains very tight. Over the first five months of the year, job gains averaged a robust 314,000 jobs per month. The unemployment rate moved up but remained low in May, at 3.7 percent. There are some signs that supply and demand in the labor market are coming into better balance. The labor force participation rate has moved up in recent months, particularly for individuals aged 25 to 54. Nominal wage growth has shown some signs of easing, and job vacancies have declined so far this year. While the jobs-to-workers gap has narrowed, labor demand still substantially exceeds the supply of available workers.")