In general— The Federal Reserve Act (
12 U.S.C. 221 et seq.) is
amended—
(1)
in section 12A, by adding at the end the following:
“(d) Emergency purchasing authority
“(1) In general—In unusual and exigent circumstances, the Committee, by the affirmative vote of at least 2/3 of the members of the Committee, may authorize any Federal Reserve bank, during such period as the Committee may determine—
“(A) to buy and sell, at home or abroad, bills, notes, revenue bonds, and warrants with a maturity from date of purchase of not exceeding six months, issued in anticipation of the collection of taxes or in anticipation of the receipt of assured revenues by any State, county, district, political subdivision, or municipality in the continental United States, including irrigation, drainage and reclamation districts, and obligations of, or fully guaranteed as to principal and interest by, a foreign government or agency thereof; and
“(B) to buy and sell in the open market, under the direction and regulations of the Committee, any obligation which is a direct obligation of, or fully guaranteed as to principal and interest by, any agency of the United States.
“(2) Maximum holding period—Any bond, bill, note, revenue bond, warrant, or other obligation purchased by a Federal Reserve bank pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be disposed of before the end of the 5-year period beginning on the end of the period determined by the Committee under paragraph (1).
“(3) Report—The Committee shall provide to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives, not later than 7 days after the Committee makes an authorization under this subsection, a report that includes—
“(A) the justification for the exercise of authority to provide;
“(B) the identity of the person to or from which purchases or sales were made;
“(C) the date and amount of the purchases or sales; and
“(D) the material terms of the purchases or sales.”
(2)
in section 14(b)—
(A)
in paragraph (1), by striking “bonds issued under the provisions of subsection (c) of section 4 of the Home Owners' Loan Act of 1933, as amended, and having maturities from date of purchase of not exceeding six months, and bills, notes, revenue bonds, and warrants with a maturity from date of purchase of not exceeding six months, issued in anticipation of the collection of taxes or in anticipation of the receipt of assured revenues by any State, county, district, political subdivision, or municipality in the continental United States, including irrigation, drainage and reclamation districts, and obligations of, or fully guaranteed as to principal and interest by, a foreign government or agency thereof,”; and
(B)
by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
“(2) To enter into security repurchase agreements and reverse repurchase agreements that have a term of 1 year or less, in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.”