WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will testify on Sept. 23 before a House panel on the central bank’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, the committee said in a statement.
The House of Representatives’ Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, led by Democrat James Clyburn, cited Powell’s comment on Wednesday that “more fiscal support is likely to be needed.”
The committee said the hearing will examine the job market, the federal government’s economic recovery efforts, how the crisis has exacerbated inequality, and the need for additional fiscal stimulus.
Powell said at a news conference following the central bank’s policy meeting on Wednesday that the economic recovery, is ongoing but the pace is expected to slow, requiring continued support from the Fed and, he said, from further government spending.
President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans in Congress have been wrangling with Democrats to whittle down a $3 trillion coronavirus aid bill passed by the Democratic-controlled House in May.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Sandra Maler and Andrea Ricci)
