The decision clears a key hurdle for Kevin Warsh’s Fed chair nomination.
The Department of Justice has ended its criminal investigation of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Jeanine Pirro, the top federal prosecutor in the District of Columbia, said in an April 24 post on X that she has directed her office to close its investigation.
“This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers,” Pirro said.
Pirro will receive a comprehensive report from the Inspector General regarding the central bank’s renovations of its headquarters in Washington.
“Accordingly, I have directed my office to close our investigation as the IG undertakes this inquiry,” she added. “Note well, however, that I will not hesitate to restart a criminal investigation should the facts warrant doing so.”
The Federal Reserve declined to comment on the decision.
The announcement could clear a key hurdle for the confirmation of Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace Powell as head of the Federal Reserve System.
Powell’s term as Fed chair ends on May 15, but he has said he would stay on temporarily until his successor is confirmed.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, has said he would block Warsh’s nomination until the Justice Department’s investigation is ended or resolved.
In January, Powell confirmed in a video statement that the Fed had been served with grand jury subpoenas by the Department of Justice regarding the central bank’s renovations and his congressional testimony in the summer of 2025.
“Those are pretexts,” he said. “The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the president.”
In 2017, the Federal Reserve had approved a $1.9 billion plan to conduct the first comprehensive overhaul of its headquarters in the institution’s century-long history. The price tag increased to $2.5 billion due to growing labor and material costs, extended construction timelines, and asbestos and soil contamination.
By Andrew Moran
