Once Roosevelt ousted Hoover from the White House in a
landslide election based on promises of debt reduction and a New Deal for
America, he went to work. He called for a bank holiday and a special session of
Congress. He signed numerous pieces of legislation and numerous executive
orders in an attempt to get America’s economy out of the Great Depression.
F.D.R. was inaugurated on March 4, 1933. Roosevelt’s first
act was signing an executive order which closed the banks for five days, March
6-10. This was to keep citizens from accessing their money which shut down the
nation for that period of time. His second act was to call a special session of
Congress, the “Hundred Days Congress,” which legislated unprecedented powers to
the President.
The Emergency Banking Relief Act of 1933 gave the President
the power to regulate banking transactions and foreign exchange, and reopened
solvent banks after the bank holiday.
The Beer and Wine Revenue Act was passed on March 9, 1933.
This law did not repeal Prohibition. However, it legalized low point wine and
beer and levied a tax of $5 per barrel.
The Unemployment Relief Act was passed on March 31, 1933.
This law created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), the first of Roosevelt “Alphabet
Agencies.” This corps provided employment for 3 million men. They worked at
reforestation, fire fighting, flood control, and swamp drainage. Workers were
required to send most of their earnings to their parents.
On April 19, 1933 Roosevelt signed an executive order
requiring all citizens to sell their gold coins and bullion to the government
for $20.67 per troy ounce. The government paid them in paper money. On the same
date he took U.S. currency off of the gold standard.
The Federal Emergency Relief Act was passed on May 12, 1933.
This law created the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). This law
granted $3 billion to the states to make direct welfare payments to unemployed
workers.
The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was passed on May 12,
1933. This law set prices for food commodities. It paid farmers to reduce the
amount of food produced. The purpose of this reduction was to cause artificial
scarcity to drive up food prices and increase farmers’ incomes. Food processing
plants were taxed to pay for these subsidies. The law was passed after the
spring crops had been planted, so farmers had to plow under acres of plants to
be in compliance with the law. Thousands of livestock were slaughtered. Some of
the meat from these animals was given to the poor. The remainder of these
animals was turned into fertilizer. This act led to higher unemployment. The
Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in 1936.
The Tennessee Valley Authority Act (TVA) was passed on May
18, 1933. This law developed hydroelectric power from the Tennessee River. It
put thousands of people to work on a long-term public works project. The TVA
analyzed the actual cost for producing electricity and regulated the final
price which was charged to the customer. Controlling the river had the benefits
of bringing low-cost housing, restoring eroded soil, reforestation, and flood
control to the state of Tennessee.
The Federal Securities Act passed on May 27, 1933. This law
required stock brokers to give sworn information to investors regarding the
soundness of the stocks and bonds that were being sold.
On June 5, 1933 Congress passed a joint resolution which
made fiat money legal in the United States.
Until this point coins and paper money had to have the equivalent value
of gold, silver, nickel, and copper in its value. This resolution made it legal
to have less precious metal content in coinage. It also made it to where people
could no longer demand gold as payment for goods and services. (This joint
resolution only rated a small bullet point in my American history book.)
The Home Owner’s Refinancing Act was passed on June 13,
1933. This law created the Home Owner’s Loan Corporation (HOLC) which
refinanced mortgages on non-farm homes. This legislation assisted about 1
million households and bailed out mortgage holding banks.
The National Industrial Recover Act was passed on June 16,
1933. This law created the National Recovery Administration (NRA) and Public
Works Administration (PWA). The NRA required industries to “compete fairly,”
put maximum work hours on labor, and established a minimum wage. Unions became
legitimate and could now bargain collectively with management. This agency
prohibited non-union contracts and included child labor laws. Businesses
participating in the program displayed the NRA eagle sign in their windows. The
NRA was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court because congress could not delegate
legislative powers to the President and the commerce clause does not apply to local
businesses. The PWA spent $4 billion on 34,000 public works projects including the
Grand Coulee Dam.
The Glass-Steagall Banking Reform Act was passed on June 16,
1933. This law created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation which now
insures bank deposits up to $100,000, the amount was $5,000 in 1933. This was
the last piece of legislation passed by the Hundred Days Congress.
On November 9, 1933 Roosevelt established the Civil Works
Administration (CWA). This organization was a branch of FERA. It provided
temporary “busy work” jobs for unemployed people during the winter. These jobs
included leaf raking and other “boondoggles”.
The Gold Reserve Act was passed on January 30, 1934. This
law authorized the President to devalue the gold content of the dollar. It made
it illegal for private citizens to own title to gold, except for jewelry and
dentistry. The value of the dollar was changed from $20.67 per troy ounce to
$35 per troy ounce.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was authorized
by Congress on June 6, 1934. The purpose of the SEC is to regulate trading of
securities in the stock markets. It was designed to protect the public from
fraud, deception, and insider trading. The authority for this commission was
given by the Federal Securities Act.
The Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act was passed on June 12,
1934. This law lowered tariffs on imports if the other country lowered its
tariffs on our exports as much as 50%. The U.S. signed deals with 21 countries
by the end of 1939 and increased foreign trade.
The National Housing Act was passed on June 28, 1934. This
law authorized the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Under authority of
this legislation the government began issuing small loans for home improvement
and building new houses.
The Frazier-Lemke Farm Bankruptcy Act was also passed on
June 28, 1934. This law suspended farm foreclosures for 5 years. This law was
ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. The law was amended and the grace
period was lowered to 3 years.
Roosevelt created the Resettlement Administration on April
30, 1935. It removed farmers who were going to be foreclosed upon from where
they had been farming for years to “better” land.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was passed on April
8, 1935. This law created jobs for public works projects by spending $11
billion on buildings, bridges, swimming pools, and roads. These jobs provided
part-time work for students and unemployed artists.
The National Labor Relations Act was passed on July 5, 1935.
This law authorized the creation of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
It enabled unskilled workers to form unions. This law led to the formation of
the AFL-CIO union.
The Social Security Act passed on August 14, 1935 and
provided for federal and state unemployment insurance. It also specified
categories of retired workers to receive monthly payments to be financed by
payroll taxes. This program was modeled after a system from European nations.
The Public Utility Holding Company Act passed on August 26,
1935. This law outlawed pyramid schemes in the public utility industry.
The Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act passed on
February 29, 1936. This law was passed in response to the Supreme Court’s
ruling on the AAA. Farmers were now to be paid a subsidy to plant soil
conserving crops like soy beans and peanuts or let their land lie fallow.
Never before in the history of the United States had the
Congress or the President taken so much control over private industry, banking,
agriculture, and the lives of individual citizens. Despite the efforts of the Roosevelt
administration the Great Depression continued to plague the nation for another
nine years.
Book Source: Beiley, Thomas A. and David M. Kennedy. The American Pageant. 7th Edition. D.C. Heath and Company. Lexington, Mass. 1983.
