Sen. Tim Scott Criticizes Fed Chair Powell's Plan to Stay After Term Ends

Sen. , criticized Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's decision to stay on the central bank's Board of Governors after his term as chair ends, calling it a 'significant mistake' during remarks at the Milken Institute Global Conference on Tuesday. Scott said Powell is breaking 75 years of precedent by remaining on the board, where every previous chair has left upon a new appointment.

Powell would be only the third chair in history to stay on the board after his term as chair ends. Powell announced last week that he plans to remain a member of the Federal Reserve board after his term as chair expires on May 15, 2026. He can serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors until 2028.

'I've said that I will not leave the board until this investigation is well and truly over with transparency and finality, and I stand by that. I'm encouraged by recent developments, and I'm watching the remaining steps in this process carefully,' Powell said.

'My concern is legal attacks on the Fed, which threaten our ability to conduct monetary policy without considering political factors,' Powell added.

The Trump administration investigated Powell and the Fed over cost overruns at the central bank's headquarters and related testimony Powell gave to Congress. 5 billion. Scott asked a question about the Fed’s new headquarters during a Senate Banking Committee hearing in June 2025.

5 billion renovation led to a DOJ investigation about his handling of the project. Scott said the renovations were incredibly over budget and the IG should dig into the information. S.

Attorney Jeanine Pirro dropped her criminal probe into Powell after setbacks in a federal court and referred the investigation to the Fed's inspector general. The Fed inspector general could recommend to the DOJ to probe Powell if warranted. S.

Attorney, devised a compromise to end the DOJ criminal probe and refer it to the Fed inspector general, which convinced Sen. Thom Tillis to allow Warsh’s nomination to move out of committee. Sen. , vowed to withhold his support for Warsh unless the Trump administration dropped its probe into Powell.

Tillis ended his block on Warsh's nomination in April 2026 after the criminal investigation was dropped. The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee advanced Kevin Warsh's nomination last week. The full Senate is expected to vote on the nomination of Kevin Warsh as Powell's successor as soon as next week.

Scott delivered an opening statement during the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs confirmation hearing for Kevin Warsh on April 21, 2026, in Washington, DC. Scott said in March 2026 that he hoped the criminal investigation into Powell goes away and that he does not believe Powell committed a criminal act.

Powell and President Donald Trump clashed in the last year over the president's calls for lower interest rates.