Chair of the Federal Reserve

The chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the head of the Federal Reserve, which is the central banking system of the United States. The position is known colloquially as "Chair of the Fed" or "Fed chair". The chair is the "active executive officer" of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The chair reports to the United States Congress twice a year on progress towards the Fed's responsibilities and monetary policy objectives, which are "maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates."
The chair is nominated by the president of the United States from among the members of the Board of Governors, and serves a term of four years after being confirmed by the United States Senate. A chair may serve multiple consecutive terms, pending a new nomination and confirmation at the end of each. William Martin was the longest serving chair, holding the position from 1951 to 1970, with Alan Greenspan a close second. The chair does not serve at the pleasure of the president, meaning that he or she cannot be dismissed by the president, however, the chair can resign before the end of the term.
The current chair is Jerome Powell, who was sworn in on February 5, 2018. He was nominated to the position by President Donald Trump on November 2, 2017, and was later confirmed by the Senate.
1935 reorganization.
Section 203 of the Banking Act of 1935 changed the name of the "Federal Reserve Board" to the "Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System." The directors' salaries were significantly lower (at $12,000 when first appointed in 1914) and their terms of office were much shorter prior to 1935. In effect, the Federal Reserve Board members in Washington, D.C., were significantly less powerful than the presidents of the regional Federal Reserve Banks prior to 1935.
In the 1935 Act, the district heads had their titles changed to "President" (e.g., "President of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis").
Appointment process.
As stipulated by the Banking Act of 1935, the president appoints the seven members of the Board of Governors; they must then be confirmed by the Senate and serve four year terms.
The nominees for chair and vice-chair may be chosen by the president from among the sitting governors for four-year terms; these appointments are also subject to Senate confirmation. The Senate Committee responsible for vetting a Federal Reserve chair nominee is the Senate Committee on Banking.
By law, the chair reports twice a year to Congress on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy objectives. He or she also testifies before Congress on numerous other issues and meets periodically with the treasury secretary.
Conflict of interest law.
The law applicable to the chair and all other members of the board provides (in part):
List of Fed chairs.
The following is a list of past and present chairs of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. A chair serves for a four-year term after appointment, but may be reappointed for several consecutive four-year terms. As of 2018, there have been a total of sixteen Fed chairs.