Edward M. Gramlich

Edward M. Gramlich served as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from November 5, 1997, until August 31, 2005.

Gramlich was born in 1939 in Rochester, New York. In 1961, he received a bachelor’s degree from Williams College. He went on to earn a master’s degree in economics in 1962 and a doctorate in economics in 1965, both from Yale University.

Gramlich began a long career in the public and nonprofit sectors right after graduation, starting with a position at the Board of Governors. From 1965 to 1971, he was a staff member in the Board’s Research Division. He left in 1971 to become director of the Policy Research Division at the Office of Economic Opportunity, the agency responsible for administering most of the Johnson Administration’s War on Poverty programs. Two years later, he became a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

In 1976, Gramlich began a long association with the University of Michigan, serving first as a professor of economics and public policy. Over the years, he held a variety of roles at the University. From 1979 to 1983 and 1991 to 1995, he was director of the University’s Institute of Public Policy Studies. He also served three years as the chair of the economics department and was dean of the School of Public Policy from 1995 to 1997.

In 1986, Gramlich was tapped to become the deputy director and acting director of the Congressional Budget Office. In 1989, he returned to the University of Michigan. Gramlich was chosen as the staff director for the Economic Study Commission that examined major league baseball in 1992. Before joining the Board of Governors, Gramlich served as chair of the Quadrennial Advisory Council on Social Security (1994–1996), a body established to examine the actuarial finances of social security and to suggest policy changes.

At the Board of Governors, Gramlich was chair of the Committee on Consumer and Community Affairs. During his tenure, the committee proposed, and the Board adopted, important changes in the Home Owner Equity Protection Act and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. Gramlich also was the Board’s delegate to, and chair of, the Airline Transportation Stabilization Board, which was established to administer a loan guarantee program enacted in response to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. In addition, he served as the Board’s liaison to and chair of the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (called “NeighborWorks America” since 2005).

After leaving the Board of Governors, Gramlich served one year as interim provost at the University of Michigan. In 2006, he joined the Urban Institute in Washington as the Richard B. Fisher Senior Fellow.

Gramlich spoke and published on numerous topics throughout his career. Noteworthy speeches as a member of the Board of Governors include: “World Capital Flows: Let's Fix the Problem, Not Abandon It,”  “Social Security in the 21st Century,” and “Subprime Mortgage Lending: Benefits, Costs, and Challenges.” Among the books he authored or coauthored are Subprime Mortgages: America’s Boom and Bust; Is it Time to Reform Social Security; The Government We Deserve; and two volumes of Setting National Priorities. He also wrote many articles focused on macroeconomics, budget policy, and social security.

Gramlich died in 2007.

Written by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. See disclaimer.