Treasury Department

Washington Bureau Chief Kyle Glazier discusses what is in store for munis in 2021, how the SEC and MSRB will function under a Biden administration and what Janet Yellen in the Treasury seat might mean. (12 minutes)

Congress is set to pass a major $900 billion relief bill on Monday after getting over a significant hurdle from Senate Republicans seeking to restrict the Federal Reserve’s powers next year.

The incoming administration chose a battle-tested policymaker who can draw on her nearly two decades at the Fed to help rebuild an economy still struggling from the coronavirus pandemic.

The central bank will prolong the life of the Commercial Paper Funding Facility and three other programs while returning congressionally approved funds for five separate facilities that will shut down Dec. 31.

Municipal finance is not a top-tier issue for treasury secretaries, but Yellen has taken a strong stance for more direct aid to state and local governments during the pandemic.

With Yellen in charge, Biden’s Treasury Department will be prepared to join Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s policy of lower-for-longer interest rates with extended, expansionary government spending.

President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen to serve as his Treasury secretary.

Fed Governor Lael Brainard has slipped from among top contenders for Treasury secretary under Joe Biden, according to people familiar with the matter, as the president-elect’s team winnows its choices for key positions.

The Federal Reserve said Friday it would comply with a Treasury Department request to return unused funds meant to backstop five emergency lending programs, moving to tamp down a public rift that arose a day earlier.

Analysts, issuers and lawmakers have mixed responses to the closure of the Municipal Liquidity Facility with some saying the move puts the municipal market in a precarious spot as COVID-19 continues to ravage the country.