Jeffrey M. Lacker

Jeffrey M. Lacker
President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Assumed office
August 1, 2004
Preceded by J. Alfred Broaddus
Personal details
Born (1955-09-27) September 27, 1955
Lexington, Kentucky

Jeffrey M. Lacker (born September 27, 1955) is an American economist and president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond since 2004.

Early years

Lacker was born in Lexington, Kentucky and grew up in Ridgewood, New Jersey.[1] He received his bachelor's degree in economics from Franklin and Marshall College in 1977. Following graduation, Lacker joined Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates in Philadelphia. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1984. Lacker was an assistant professor of economics at the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University from 1984 to 1989.

Career at Federal Reserve

Lacker joined the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond in 1989 as an economist in the banking area of the Research Department. He was named research officer in 1994, vice president in 1996, and senior vice president and director of the Research Department in May 1999.[2]

Lacker took office on August 1, 2004, as the seventh chief executive of the Fifth District Federal Reserve Bank at Richmond. He is serving the remainder of a term that began on March 1, 2011. He serves as a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee, bringing his district's perspective to policy discussions in Washington.

Lacker's vote was the solitary dissent in the August, September, October, and December 2006 Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings.[3] The FOMC decided to keep interest rates steady at 5.25 per cent after a series of seventeen consecutive increases of twenty-five basis points each; Lacker voted for additional tightening. Mr. Lacker dissented at the January 2009 meeting; "Mr. Lacker dissented because he preferred to expand the monetary base by purchasing U.S. Treasury securities rather than through targeted credit programs" according to the FOMC minutes.

In addition Mr. Lacker voted against the action at April 2012 meeting: "... who does not anticipate that economic conditions are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate through late 2014" according to FOMC press release.[4]

He cast the sole vote against quantitative easing by the purchase of mortgage-backed securities and the issuance of forward guidance at the September 2012 FOMC meeting.[5]

When the Federal met in September 2015, Mr. Lacker issued the only vote in favor of increasing interest rates. His was the first such dissenting vote from the committee all year.[6]

Other activities

Lacker is the author of numerous articles in professional journals on monetary, financial, and payment economics, and has presented his work at several universities and central banks. He taught at The College of William and Mary in 1992 and 1993, and in 1997 he was a visiting scholar at the Swiss National Bank.

Lacker serves as director for the board of the Richmond Jewish Foundation. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Junior Achievement of Central Virginia. and director of the World Affairs Council of Greater Richmond.

Personal life

Lacker and his wife, Lisa Halberstadt, have two sons.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Harper, Christine. "A Conversation with Jeffrey M. Lacker", Council on Foreign Relations, May 9, 2013. Accessed April 17, 2014. "It's delightful to be back in New York. I grew up just over the river, Ridgewood, New Jersey, and -- son's here, had dinner with my son last night and was treated to just an exceptional flight in over Lower Manhattan last night."
  2. ↑ "President Jeffrey Lacker Bio - Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond". Richmondfed.org. 2004-08-01. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  3. ↑ FOMC: Transcripts and Other Historical Materials, 2006. Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
  4. ↑ "FRB: Press Release-Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement-April 25, 2012". Federalreserve.gov. 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  5. ↑ All Things Considered (2012-09-15). "Fed's Latest Stimulus Lacked Unanimous Support". NPR. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  6. ↑ Appelbaum, Binyamin (17 September 2015). "Fed Leaves Interest Rates Unchanged". The New York Times Company. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond: Who we are: President Jeff Lacker". Richmondfed.org. Retrieved April 28, 2012.
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