Federal Reserve Act (1913)

1) Link to the Text of the Act
Read the statute (12 U.S.C. § 221 et seq.)

2) Why It Was Done
Enacted to create a central banking system for the United States. The Act established the Federal Reserve System to provide a safer, more flexible, and more stable monetary and financial system.

3) Pre-existing Law or Constitutional Rights
Before 1913, the U.S. lacked a true central bank. Banking panics in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, especially the Panic of 1907, exposed the need for a lender of last resort and coordinated monetary policy.