Lagged reserve accounting and the Fed's new operating procedure
Adoption of the Fed's new reserves-oriented
operating procedure on October 6,
1979, was greeted with praise by both admirers
and critics of the Federal Reserve System.
Especially encouraged were those who, for
many years, had urged the Fed to abandon its
interest rate operating procedure in favor of a
reserves targeting procedure. These critics
viewed the proposed new procedure as a
major step in the right direction, even as they
withheld final judgment until they saw how
the new procedure was implemented.