U.S. Senate panel to question Fed nominee Barr on May 19

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s second pick to serve as the top regulatory official at the Federal Reserve will be questioned by the U.S. Senate Banking Committee on May 19, according to the panel’s website.

Michael Barr, a former Treasury Department official, will field questions from lawmakers as he seeks confirmation for the job of the Fed’s Vice Chair for Supervision.

Barr will appear alongside Jaime Lizarraga and Mark Uyeda, who Biden nominated to join the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Barr is the second person Biden has nominated for the job, after his previous selection, Sarah Bloom Raskin, withdrew from consideration amid opposition from Republicans and some moderate Democrats.

If confirmed, Barr would take over a broad portfolio at the Fed, including monitoring the nation’s largest banks, updating fair lending rules and establishing new protocols around assessing financial risk from climate change.

(Reporting by Pete Schroeder; Editing by Mark Porter)