Dumas, W., Erdenemandakh, J., Karongo, L., Oh, Y. T., Teed, D., Wang, W., & Watkins, J. (2017). Origins and Consequences of the Humphrey Hawkins Act of 1978.
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The Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978, commonly known as the Humphrey-Hawkins Act shifted U.S. economic policy from a focus on price stability to a dual mandate which added an employment goal. The Act emended the Employment Act of 1946 to include specific numeric goals for inflation and employment while maintaining the one could not be sacrificed to achieve the other. This paper uses several statistical analysis methods to determine if there is a quantifiable effect on price stability or employment due to the passing of the Act along with discussion of any change in Fed behavior. Further comparisons are made to selected developed countries with central banking systems that have single mandates along with a compared dual mandate country.