About the FOMC

Recent FOMC press conference

December 18, 2024

FOMC Press Conference December 18, 2024
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      FOMC Transcripts and other historical materials

      The term "monetary policy" refers to the actions undertaken by a central bank, such as the Federal Reserve, to influence the availability and cost of money and credit to help promote national economic goals. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 gave the Federal Reserve responsibility for setting monetary policy.

      The Federal Reserve controls the three tools of monetary policy--open market operations, the discount rate, and reserve requirements. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is responsible for the discount rate and reserve requirements, and the Federal Open Market Committee is responsible for open market operations. Using the three tools, the Federal Reserve influences the demand for, and supply of, balances that depository institutions hold at Federal Reserve Banks and in this way alters the federal funds rate. The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend balances at the Federal Reserve to other depository institutions overnight.

      Changes in the federal funds rate trigger a chain of events that affect other short-term interest rates, foreign exchange rates, long-term interest rates, the amount of money and credit, and, ultimately, a range of economic variables, including employment, output, and prices of goods and services.

      Structure of the FOMC

      The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) consists of twelve members--the seven members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; and four of the remaining eleven Reserve Bank presidents, who serve one-year terms on a rotating basis. 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. Nonvoting Reserve Bank presidents attend the meetings of the Committee, participate in the discussions, and contribute to the Committee's assessment of the economy and policy options.

      The FOMC holds eight regularly scheduled meetings per year. At these meetings, the Committee reviews economic and financial conditions, determines the appropriate stance of monetary policy, and assesses the risks to its long-run goals of price stability and sustainable economic growth.

      For more information about the FOMC and monetary policy, see the "Monetary Policy" section of The Fed Explained: What the Central Bank Does. FOMC Rules and Authorizations are available online.

      2024 Committee Members

      Alternate Members

      Federal Reserve Bank Rotation on the FOMC

      Committee membership changes at the first regularly scheduled meeting of the year.

        2025 2026 2027
      Members New York
      Chicago
      Boston
      St. Louis
      Kansas City
       
      New York
      Cleveland
      Philadelphia
      Dallas
      Minneapolis
       
      New York
      Chicago
      Richmond
      Atlanta
      San Francisco
       
      Alternate
      Members
      New York
      Cleveland
      Philadelphia
      Dallas
      Minneapolis
      New York
      Chicago
      Richmond
      Atlanta
      San Francisco
      New York
      Cleveland
      Boston
      St. Louis
      Kansas City


      †For the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the First Vice President is the alternate for the President. Return to table

      For additional information, please use the FOMC FOIA request form.

      Last Update: January 10, 2025