Fed vice chair talks on her job, agency

The Wharton School served as a stop last night for Federal Reserve Board Vice Chairperson Alice Rivlin's self-described "one-woman campaign to demystify the secrets of the temple." More than 300 people gathered in Steinberg-Dietrich Hall to hear Rivlin -- founding director of the Congressional Budget Office and now a top assistant to Federal Reserve Board Chairperson Alan Greenspan -- describe the basic structure and operations of the Fed and the more interesting aspects of her current role. The talk was the last of a three-year lecture series organized by Wharton's Public Policy and Management Department and funded in part by the contributions of Martin Bruce, a 1964 Wharton graduate and sponsor of the Gruss Public Management Fellowship Program. Rivlin immediately put the audience at ease with her humorous career advice. The director of the Office of Management and Budget during President Clinton's first administration, Rivlin said she did not know many of the job details when she accepted the position of Fed vice chairperson. "I knew the Fed was in charge of monetary policy," she said, drawing a roar of laughter from the audience. "Accepting [a job] without knowing [its duties] is a very bad career tactic -- I don't recommend it," she added jokingly. But Rivlin learned quickly, finding herself at the Fed during what she described as "a very exciting time." According to Rivlin, the current technology and communications revolution poses an interesting challenge to the Fed's distinct separation of banking from commerce. Using the issue of Internet banking to illustrate her argument, Rivlin said that in addition to addressing security problems, the Fed might be called on to create regulations for interaction with non-banks. During this period of financial modernization, Rivlin said, the Fed's goal is to "use caution against taking too big a jump at once." Rivlin also listed some of the lesser-known duties of the Fed, including monitoring policies on mortgages, loans and car leases. Noting the board's many responsibilities, Rivlin described the Fed as "a group of hardworking people trying to figure out very interesting problems." Although Rivlin addressed a wide range of issues, a few students said they wished she could have talked longer. And Wharton and Engineering sophomore Jeremiah Kalan said the material covered was very basic but in general the talk was "very informative." According to Public Policy and Management Chairperson Janet Rothenberg Pack, the goal of the series is to present "speakers centrally involved in public policy issues of the day." "[Rivlin] simply could not be better suited to the [program's] goals," Pack added.