House Democrats want the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco to show its work in selecting its next president to ascertain that it is interviewing candidates who aren’t white males from within the Fed.
The regional Fed bank is looking for a successor to John Williams, who is headed to New York to become the head of the New York Fed, a top position in the Fed system.
Forty-three House Democrats weighed in on the selection process Friday with a letter to the chairman of the search committee, calling on him to update them with statistics about the backgrounds of the candidates interviewed.
“The fact remains that leadership positions within the Federal Reserve System are disproportionately occupied by white men with strong ties to either Wall Street or to the agency itself,” wrote the Democrats, led by House Financial Services Committee ranking member Maxine Waters of California.
Democrats have tried to elevate the issue of diversity within the Fed system. Last month, for instance, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., introduced legislation mandating that the Fed copy the NFL’s “Rooney Rule” — requiring regional banks to interview minority candidates when hiring presidents.
The House Democrats didn’t put their requests in the form of legislation, but asked the San Francisco Federal Reserve to provide and update statistics about the proportions of minority and female candidates, as well as the share from finance, academia, labor, civil rights, and nonprofit groups.
Regional Fed bank presidents are responsible for regulating banks and take turns voting on monetary policy in meetings in Washington. They are selected by the regional banks’ directors, subject to approval by the Fed’s Board of Governors in D.C. The Senate does not confirm them.
