Final answer:
During the 2008-2009 Great Recession, the Federal Reserve implemented quantitative easing to increase the money supply and encourage lending, rather than focusing on adjusting the reserve requirement. This was part of their role as lender of last resort to provide liquidity in times of crisis. The reserve requirements were more significantly addressed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Step-by-step explanation:
Actions of the Federal Reserve During the Great Recession
During the 2008-2009 Great Recession, the Federal Reserve Bank used various monetary policy tools to combat the economic downturn. One of the key efforts was through quantitative easing, a procedure where the Fed purchases longer-term securities in the market in order to increase the money supply and encourage lending and investment. This move can be seen as a way to make short-term credit available and provide liquidity to the financial system. It was part of the Fed's role as the lender of last resort in times of crisis. The reserves requirement was not the main focus of monetary policy adjustments during that time. Though the Federal Reserve rarely uses large changes in reserve requirements, during the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, they did reduce reserve requirements as a response to the economic challenges posed by the pandemic, indicating that such a policy can be part of the Fed's toolkit under extraordinary circumstances.