Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida has submitted a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi requesting a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome H. Powell for potential perjury and making false statements to federal officials.
The letter cites Powell’s sworn testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on June 25, 2025, in which he denied the inclusion of luxury features—such as a VIP dining room, premium marble, water features, and a roof terrace garden—in the controversial $2.5 billion renovation of the Federal Reserve’s Eccles Building. However, official project documents submitted to the National Capital Planning Commission directly contradict his statements.
According to the New York Post, the projected renovations by the Fed have risen by 30% from its original estimate of $1.9 billion.
Powell also claimed that the Eccles Building “never had” a serious renovation, despite a major overhaul between 1999 and 2003. Additionally, correspondence between Powell and former OMB Director Russell Vought mischaracterized the nature and scale of the project changes that ballooned the renovation budget by $600 million.
“These are not minor misstatements,” said Rep. Luna. “Chairman Powell knowingly misled both Congress and executive branch officials about the true nature of a taxpayer-funded project. Lying under oath is a serious offense—especially from someone tasked with overseeing our monetary system and public trust.”
Just days after President Trump called for the resignation of Powell over the renovation project at the Federal Reserve headquarters, OMB Director Vought wrote a letter to Powell over “mismanagement” of the Fed.
“Chairman Jerome Powell has grossly mismanaged the Fed,” said Vought in a social media post accompanying his letter. “While continuing to run a deficit since FY23 (the first time in the Fed’s history), the Fed is way over budget on the renovation of its headquarters. Now up to $2.5 billion, roughly $700 million over its initial cost. These renovations include terrace rooftop gardens, water features, VIP elevators, and premium marble. The cost per square foot is $1,923—double the cost for renovating an ordinary historic federal building. The Palace of Versailles would have cost $3 billion in today’s dollars!”
Rep. Luna’s letter to the DOJ cites potential violations of:
- 18 U.S.C. § 1621 (Perjury)
- 18 U.S.C. § 1001 (False Statements/Concealment)
Rep. Luna is calling on the DOJ to confirm receipt of the referral and to open a formal investigation into whether Chairman Powell’s actions meet the statutory thresholds for criminal prosecution.
“The American people deserve transparency—not deception—especially when billions of dollars and institutional integrity are at stake,” Luna added.
The President does not have direct control over the Federal Reserve’s policy decisions, but does have influence. The President can nominate and appoint members of the Federal Reserve Board, including the Fed Chair, which can influence the overall direction of the Fed, and can also voice their opinions about monetary policy. The President selects one member of the Board of Governors to serve as Chair of the Board, who also serves as the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) Chair.
The FOMC, which makes the actual monetary policy decisions, is comprised of all seven governors and five of the 12 regional Federal Reserve Bank Presidents. While the chair has one vote like the other governors, the structure is designed to prevent one individual, including the president, from dictating decisions and policies. Trump appointed Powell as head of the Federal Reserve during his first term in 2018, with his term ending in May 2026.
The Federal Reserve System performs five general functions to promote the effective operation of the U.S. economy:
- To promote maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates in the U.S. economy;
- Promotes the stability of the financial system and seeks to minimize and contain systemic risks through active monitoring and engagement in the U.S. and abroad;
- Promotes the safety and soundness of individual financial institutions and monitors their impact on the financial system as a whole;
- Fosters payment and settlement system safety and efficiency through services to the banking industry and the U.S. government that facilitate U.S.-dollar transactions and payments; and
- Promotes consumer protection and community development through consumer-focused supervision and examination, research and analysis of emerging consumer issues and trends, community economic development activities, and the administration of consumer laws and regulations.
Click here for the full letter from Rep. Luna to the DOJ.
