Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is expected to announce the first interest rate cuts by the central bank in more than a year on Wednesday afternoon. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) has maintained a range of 5.25 percent to 5.5 percent since July of last year -- the highest such range in 23 years.  The range is expected to drop by at least a quarter of a percentage point, although Powell has indicated that a return to the run of bargain-basement rates spanning the 2008 financial crisis through the pandemic isn't planned. Still, even a modest reduction should help further alleviate mortgage rates, which are now at least back to the levels seen in February 2023. WGN's Chip Brewster is providing live coverage beginning at 2:15 p.m. EDT. Watch the video above.