One hundred and fifty members of the House sent a bipartisan letter to the chamber’s leaders today urging them to withhold consideration of any proposal to reduce dividend payments on Federal Reserve stock until the Government Accountability Office has completed a study on the plan’s long-term implications.
The letter comes as the House prepares to take up a highway spending bill and considers ways to pay for it. The Senate approved a bill in August that pays for itself in part by significantly reducing the dividends paid to Fed member banks with more than $1 billion in assets.
ABA and the state associations have vigorously opposed the dividend proposal and helped persuade members to sign onto yesterday’s letter, which was spearheaded by Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) and Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.).
