Federal Reserve Board

There are seven members on the FRB, each appointed to a 14-year term by the President of the United States with the advice and consent of the Senate. The President designates the chairman and the vice-chairman of the Board. Ben Bernanke is the current chairman of the FRB.

Three committees advise the FRB: the Federal Advisory Council, the Consumer Advisory Council, and the Thrift Institutions Advisory Council.

The FRB is part of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), along with the president of the New York District Federal Reserve Bank and four other Federal Reserve District bank presidents. The FRB chair is also the chair of the FOMC.

The FRB also appoints three of the nine directors at each of the Federal Reserve's 12 reserve banks. Either the FRB or the local reserve banks appoint the directors of the Federal Reserve's 25 branch banks.