The Board’s staff is routinely asked for technical assistance in drafting legislation on banking, consumer protection, and amendments to the Community Reinvestment Act and other areas. Finally, members of the Congress often write letters to the Board - individually and in groups typically urging a specific direction for monetary policy.
Compounding this bleak outlook in the advanced economies and in the Eurozone in particular, is a banking sector under stress, characterised by shrinking lending or deleveraging, as they adjust to new regulatory requirements, amid increasing reluctance to lend outside their own countries.