Sponsors (6)
The bill strengthens stable, independent funding and staffing for financial-system monitoring (improving systemic risk oversight) at the cost of higher recurring obligations, reduced congressional budget oversight, and more centralized managerial control.
Financial regulators, FSOC, and financial institutions gain more reliable, statutory minimum funding and staffing (OFR budget floor of $124.6M and 231 FTEs; FSOC staff at least 48 FTEs), improving sustained monitoring and analysis of systemic financial risk.
The Office of Financial Research keeps operational independence from the Treasury Secretary on budget, staffing, and compensation decisions, protecting its ability to conduct impartial analysis.
Guaranteed minimum staffing levels (OFR and FSOC) and pre-funded transfers preserve continuity of data collection and analytic capacity, reducing disruption to ongoing risk surveillance and coordination.
The bill creates recurring statutory budget and staffing floors (partly indexed to compensation), increasing long-term federal obligations that may raise costs for taxpayers or fees charged to financial institutions.
It reduces congressional oversight by barring Appropriations Committees from reviewing certain OFR funding, limiting lawmakers' ability to scrutinize or alter spending decisions.
Concentrating budget and staffing control in a single appointee (the Director) increases risk of unilateral decisions and weakens internal checks on management and priorities.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Gives the OFR Director sole budget control, sets a $124.627M indexed minimum and 231 FTE floor, requires FSOC to have 48 FTEs, and mandates annual $15.287M transfers from OFR to FSOC.
Grants the Director of the Office of Financial Research (OFR) sole control over the Office’s annual budget, sets a statutory minimum budget floor of $124,627,000 indexed to the Employment Cost Index for state and local government workers, and requires at least 231 full‑time equivalent (FTE) staff. It also removes certain consultation requirements with the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) chair on OFR budget, staffing, and compensation and bars Appropriations Committee review of a specified category of OFR funding while prohibiting the Treasury Secretary from influencing OFR budget or staffing decisions. Requires FSOC to maintain at least 48 FTEs and directs the OFR to transfer at least $15,287,000 annually to FSOC for staffing and Council expenses (including the independent member’s office), with those transferred funds available for immediate use; the law indexes the statutory minimum by an employment cost measure each year. The changes increase the OFR’s budgetary independence, establish staffing and funding floors, and alter oversight and funding flows between OFR, FSOC, and Congress.
Introduced January 16, 2026 by Bill Foster · Last progress January 16, 2026