Richmond Federal Reserve President Barkin said it is an "extremely close call" whether the Fed's current policy rate is high enough to bring down inflation. While noting there is "ample justification" for tightening policy and unwinding some of last year's rate cuts, he pointed out that the impact of rising prices is not spreading evenly across the economy and varies by sector, and he expressed skepticism about the view that the labor market has strengthened significantly. At the July 28–29 FOMC meeting, the Fed decided to hold rates steady for the fifth consecutive meeting, but this time three of the 12 voting members—Cleveland Fed President Hammack, Dallas Fed President Logan, and Minneapolis Fed President Kashkari—dissented, arguing for a 0.25 percentage point rate hike. Barkin said he did not know whether he would have joined the dissent, noting that he does not have a vote at this year's FOMC meetings.