No Denny there was no appropriation bill by Congress that you missed. Bernanke has not decided on a unitary basis to entirely ignore the US Constitution. But of course, you still think the Fed is part of the government. They aren't. They can do as they please for the most part. "ECB", it's components and counterparts in the USA have been essentially married for a long, long time.

Congress DID transfer a bunch of their debt onto us, but that was congress. Same guys that gave the Fed responsibility for monetary policy in the first place.