🏛️ Powell Responds to $2.5B Fed HQ Renovation Scrutiny
• In June 2025, Fed Chair Jerome Powell testified before the Senate Banking Committee regarding the Federal Reserve’s $2.5B headquarters renovation, expanding on the issue again in July — including during a tour attended by Donald Trump.
• Costs ballooned from early estimates due to asbestos and lead removal, major safety and security upgrades, inflation-driven spikes in materials and labor, and the complexity of modernizing nearly 100-year-old buildings.
• In early 2026, the DOJ opened a criminal investigation, issuing subpoenas amid accusations of misleading Congress and growing political pressure on the Fed.
💡 Powell maintains the project is not about luxury, stressing it’s necessary to meet safety codes, improve accessibility, and ensure long-term operational efficiency in the historic 1930s-era structures.
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