PANews reported on September 30th that Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Jefferson reiterated in the recent consensus statement that the policy tool is the federal funds rate. Given recent history, the probability of hitting the effective lower bound has decreased. The Federal Reserve remains ready to use all its tools to fulfill its mandate. The size of the balance sheet was a point of disagreement among Fed members. The balance sheet continues to shrink in an orderly manner. The ultimate level of ample reserves is a joint decision of the entire Federal Open Market Committee.