Fifty Years of the Shadow Open Market Committee
A Retrospective on Its Role in Monetary Policy
0-3
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
616 Pages, 6 x 9
Formats: ebook: PDF, ebook: EPUB, Hardcover
Hardcover, $59.95 (CA $80.95) (US $59.95)
Publication Date: October 2025
ISBN 9780817926748
Overview
A deep dive into the evolution of Federal Reserve policy since the early 1970s through the lens of the Shadow Open Market Committee (SOMC), a group of private academic economists who act as the Fed’s outside watchdogs, providing candid, economically grounded critiques of the Fed’s conduct of policy. Contributors examine the SOMC’s history, its changing role, and the challenges it faces today, focusing on the importance of transparency and rules versus discretion in the making of policy. The volume is based on a two-day symposium held at the Hoover Institution October 13–14, 2024. For those committed to understanding the most important issues facing the Fed and the contributions of the SOMC to the monetary policy debate, this volume serves as an essential resource.
Reviews
“Offers essential ideas for a strong and steady monetary policy . . . [and] deep insights into the evolution of policy, present challenges, and practical next steps.” —Lawrence Goodman, president, Center for Financial Stability“Sheds light on policy successes and failures [and] above all, demonstrates that, contrary to recent conventional wisdom, money cannot be ignored in understanding inflation.” —Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, 2003–2013
“The SOMC’s guidance will be crucial for the Fed’s evolution as it reconsiders its monetary and credit policy framework amid public debate about its role and independence.” —Robert G. King, professor of economics at Boston University
“An invaluable assessment of both the Federal Reserve’s—and the SOMC’s—hits and misses over the past fifty years.” —Kevin L. Kliesen, business economist and research officer, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Author Biography
Jeffrey M. Lacker is a senior affiliated scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, a member of the Shadow Open Market Committee, and former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
Michael D. Bordo is a distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and a Board of Governors Professor of Economics at Rutgers University, where he directs the Center for Monetary and Financial History.
Mickey D. Levy is a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and a long-standing member of the Shadow Open Market Committee. He also runs MDL Insights, an economic consulting firm.
John B. Taylor is the George P. Shultz Senior Fellow in Economics at the Hoover Institution and the Mary and Robert Raymond Professor of Economics at Stanford University, where he directs the Introductory Economics Center.
