Created by the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 after the Panic of 1907. Its Open Market Committee meets eight times a year to set rates, and its multi-trillion-dollar balance sheet is itself a policy tool.
Open the interactive page for FED →Created byFederal Reserve Act of 1913, P.L. 63-43 (ch. 6, 38 Stat. 251)
Head appointed12 U.S.C. §§ 241–242: seven Governors appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, for staggered 14-year terms (no reappointment after a full term); Chair and Vice Chairs designated by the President from among the Governors, Senate-confirmed, 4-year terms (PAS)
Removal standard12 U.S.C. § 242: each member holds office 'unless sooner removed for cause by the President' — scope of 'for cause' is before the Supreme Court in Trump v. Cook (argued Jan. 21, 2026; undecided as of June 11, 2026, with the Court having let the Governor remain seated pending decision)
Funded underself-funded — no appropriations: Board expenses paid by semiannual assessments on the Federal Reserve Banks (12 U.S.C. § 243); the System operates on earnings from its securities portfolio and remits surplus to Treasury (12 U.S.C. § 289)
Congressional oversightHouse Financial Services · Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Inspector generalown OIG of the Board of Governors — IG appointed by the Chair of the Board (designated-federal-entity-type IG under 5 U.S.C. § 415, not PAS); the same OIG also covers the CFPB
Judicial reviewBank-regulatory orders get direct court-of-appeals review (e.g., 12 U.S.C. § 1848 for Bank Holding Company Act orders); rules via APA; monetary-policy/FOMC decisions effectively unreviewable; FOIA Exemptions 5 and 8 shield FOMC deliberations and exam material
The Federal Reserve is insulated from annual political control. The available channels: the President nominates governors as seats open and the Senate confirms them; Congress can amend the Federal Reserve Act that created it; the Chair testifies to Congress twice a year.
CFPB · USPS · full org map