NEW YORK — The Federal Reserve has asked a U.S. appeals court to stay a ruling that it must disclose documents regarding borrowing from its discount window and other "last resort" lending programs during the financial crisis.
On Friday, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals declined to reconsider a March decision by a three-judge appellate panel that the Fed must turn over documents related to individual borrowing from those lending programs.
"The stay is necessary to permit the board to consult with the Department of Justice regarding an appeal to the Supreme Court," said David Skidmore, a Fed spokesman.
The Fed filed its request on Wednesday seeking a 90-day stay.
Bloomberg LP's Bloomberg News and Fox News Network LLC's Fox Business Network separately sued the Fed, seeking access to documents related to discount window usage.
The Fed's Board of Governors and a banking group had argued, in part, that disclosure would harm the banks who borrowed from one of 12 Federal Reserve banks and could affect the banking system as a whole if struggling banks refused to access the "last resort" lending programs because of disclosure requirements.
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