Boyle Statement on June Fed Interest Rate Decision
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Pennsylvania Congressman Brendan F. Boyle, Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, released the following statement after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced it was maintaining the current interest rate target range:
“Last week, we celebrated another jobs report that beat expectations and showed prime-age employment for women is at an all-time high,” said Ranking Member Boyle. “And just today, we saw a CPI report indicating that monthly core inflation is down to its lowest point in more than 2 years and heading towards the Fed’s target. Our economic success was spurred by Democratic investments and powered by American workers – but that success is being threatened by the Fed’s continuation of high interest rates. It's time for the Fed to honor its dual mandate and begin cutting rates.”
“As I wrote in my letter to Chair Powell earlier this week, the Fed’s actions are exacerbating our housing crisis and risking needless damage to our economy. Holding rates too high for too long poses a grave risk to American workers. With the GOP pushing extreme plans that cut Social Security benefits, slash food assistance programs, and raise costs for families, the last thing Americans need right now is another threat to their wallets from the Fed.”
Ranking Member Boyle has consistently warned of the risks that the Fed’s aggressive interest rate hikes pose to our economy. Earlier this week, he sent a letter with Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell calling on the Fed to begin lowering rates. In May 2023, he led his colleagues in both chambers of Congress in a letter to Chair Powell, warning that prolonged interest rate increases could throw millions of Americans out of work and crush small businesses. In July 2023, after the Fed raised rates for the 11th time, he penned an op-ed with Rep. Val Hoyle (D-OR) pointing out the danger of an unnecessary over-correction to American workers. In January, he firmly called for the Fed to respect its dual mandate and begin cutting rates in 2024.
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