The Fed's Policy Rate Is a Range, and Has Been Since December 16, 2008 — Currently 3.75-4.00%
The Federal Reserve's own table is headed "target federal funds rate or range". Rows before December 16, 2008 carry one number; from that date, two. As of 2026-09-24 the level is 3.75-4.00%.
The table is headed "rate or range"
The Federal Reserve's own page does not commit to one word. Its policy-rate table is headed "FOMC's target federal funds rate or range, change (basis points) and level (%)". "Or range" is doing the work — the same table holds both kinds of entry, and which kind you get depends on the date.[1]
The most recent row reads September 17, 2026 — an increase of 25 basis points to a level of 3.75-4.00. That is two numbers, not one. A sentence like "the Fed's rate is 3.75%" drops the upper bound; "4.00%" drops the lower one.[1]
The change happened on a specific date, and the table shows it
Reading down the table, the format changes on December 16, 2008. That row gives the level as 0-0.25. The rows above it give one number — October 29, 2008 reads 1.00, and December 11, 2007 reads 4.25.[1]
The cut that made the change was itself a range. The December 16, 2008 row records the decrease as "75-100" basis points rather than a single figure. The narrative on the same page puts it the same way — implementation changed "particularly so since late 2008 when the FOMC established a near-zero target range for the federal funds rate".[1]
So historical comparisons cross a format boundary. Comparing a 2026 level with a 2006 level is comparing a band with a point. This page does not say how such comparisons should be made — only that the two are not the same kind of figure.[1]
Setting the range and hitting it are different jobs
The FOMC sets the range; keeping the market rate inside it takes separate tools. The page says that from December 2015 the Federal Reserve used overnight reverse repurchase agreements (ON RRPs) "as a supplementary policy tool, as necessary, to help control the federal funds rate and keep it in the target range set by the FOMC".[1]
It also records later steps: term and overnight repos in September 2019 to keep reserves ample, the same tools amid COVID-related stress around March 2020, and since 2021 standing repo (SRP) operations, which "limit upward pressure and help provide a ceiling on rates". A ceiling is not the target — it is a device for keeping the traded rate from rising through the top of the band.[1]
The page carries a correction of its own
One footnote is worth reading as itself: "On July 10, 2024, this date was corrected from March 3, 2020, to March 4, 2020." The official record changed a date and said so on the page. Anyone who cited the 2020 row before that correction cited a different date than the one that stands now.[1]
What this page has not established
This page rests on one institution — the Federal Reserve Board's own site — with no independent cross-check. It reports what that page says, not whether the policy worked.[1]
Not established: where the effective federal funds rate actually sits inside the current band, the administered rates used alongside these tools, and whether any level in the table was later revised. One inconsistency is recorded without explanation: the page's footer reads "Last Update: September 16, 2026" while the newest row in the table is dated September 17, 2026. This page does not resolve that. As of 2026-09-24.[1]
Verified facts
Cross-checked against 2+ independent sourcesThis section contains facts cross-checked against multiple sources.
The Federal Reserve Board's Open Market Operations page heads its policy-rate table "FOMC's target federal funds rate or range, change (basis points) and level (%)", and its most recent entry reads September 17, 2026 — an increase of 25 basis points to a level of 3.75-4.00.[1] 1 sources
Reported, not confirmed
Not cross-checked — do not read as factFrom here on: claims and speculation that are not cross-checked.
Entries dated December 16, 2008 and later give the level as two numbers (the December 16, 2008 row reads 0-0.25). Entries dated before that give one number (October 29, 2008 reads 1.00; December 11, 2007 reads 4.25).[1] single-source ×1 · Federal Reserve Board, Open Market Operations — policy rate table
The page states that policy implementation "has evolved considerably since the financial crisis, and particularly so since late 2008 when the FOMC established a near-zero target range for the federal funds rate".[1] single-source ×1 · Federal Reserve Board, Open Market Operations — narrative
It states that during normalization from December 2015 the Federal Reserve used overnight reverse repurchase agreements (ON RRPs) "as a supplementary policy tool, as necessary, to help control the federal funds rate and keep it in the target range set by the FOMC", and that since 2021 standing repo (SRP) operations "limit upward pressure and help provide a ceiling on rates".[1] single-source ×1 · Federal Reserve Board, Open Market Operations — narrative
A footnote on the same table reads: "On July 10, 2024, this date was corrected from March 3, 2020, to March 4, 2020."[1] single-source ×1 · Federal Reserve Board, Open Market Operations — footnote
Timeline
- 2008-12-16
The table's level format changes to two numbers, reading 0-0.25, with the decrease recorded as 75-100 basis points.[1]
- 2015-12
Normalization begins; the page describes ON RRPs used as a supplementary tool to help keep the federal funds rate in the target range.[1]
- 2021
The page states that standing repo (SRP) operations have been conducted since this year, providing a ceiling on rates.[1]
- 2024-07-10
A footnote records that a table date was corrected from March 3, 2020 to March 4, 2020.[1]
- 2026-09-17
Newest row in the table: an increase of 25 basis points to a level of 3.75-4.00.[1]
- 2026-09-24
Reference date for this page. The source page was read on this day, HTTP 200.[1]
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 09/24/2026, 18:16
- Body characters
- 2,884
- Sources
- 1 sources adopted
- Model
- claude-opus-5 (Federal Reserve Open Market Operations page, read line by line)
- Time
- 09/24/2026, 18:16
- Verdict
- Passed
Show revision history (2)
| 09/24/2026, 09:00 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
| 09/24/2026 | First version. Read the Federal Reserve Open Market Operations page line by line, including the table footnotes. | Updated |
Frequently asked
Is the Fed's policy rate one number or two?
Two, for dates from December 16, 2008 onward. The Federal Reserve's table is headed "target federal funds rate or range" and the latest row gives the level as 3.75-4.00.[1]
When did it stop being a single number?
The table's format changes at December 16, 2008, whose level reads 0-0.25. Rows before it carry one number, such as 1.00 on October 29, 2008.[1]
What was the most recent change?
The newest row reads September 17, 2026 — an increase of 25 basis points to 3.75-4.00.[1]
Does setting the range mean the market rate equals it?
The page treats them as separate problems. It describes ON RRPs used from December 2015 to help keep the federal funds rate in the range, and standing repo operations since 2021 that provide a ceiling on rates.[1]
Where does the effective rate sit inside the band?
This page does not say. That figure is not on the source page it used.[1]
Official links
Sources
- [1] Open Market Operations primary