Washington, D.C. – Today Congressman Walter B. Jones (R-NC) applauded a decision yesterday by Manhattan Chief U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska requiring the Federal Reserve to identify the companies in its emergency lending programs. The ruling that the Fed “improperly withheld agency records” was the result of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed by Bloomberg News. The judge rejected the Fed’s argument that disclosure of its loan records would cause borrowers in the Federal Reserve System to undergo “imminent competitive harm” due to their use of Fed lending programs.

In a November 12, 2008, letter to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Congressman Jones had urged the Federal Reserve to reconsider its decision to deny Bloomberg News’ FOIA request regarding details of the Fed’s emergency loans to banks.

“I am pleased that the court has ruled in favor of the American taxpayer,” Congressman Jones said. “When taxpayer dollars are used to bail out financial institutions, the American people deserve full disclosure on who receives those funds and under what terms. Americans deserve to know how their hard-earned dollars are being spent.”

“At a time when many Americans have serious concerns about their own financial security, it is important for our nation to have confidence in the actions of the Federal Reserve. The Fed should know better than anyone that blocking transparency in financial markets will only delay America’s economic recovery,” Jones said.

Congressman Walter Jones is a member of the House Financial Services Committee and an original cosponsor of H.R. 1207, the Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009. This legislation would eliminate restrictions on Government Accountability Office audits of the Federal Reserve and direct the Comptroller General to complete an audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and of the Federal Reserve banks, followed by a detailed report to Congress.