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THE NEW DEAL
The New Deal was a program designed by FDR and his “Brain Trust” to alleviate the problems of the Great Depression. The New Deal policies focused on three general goals: relief for the needy, economic recovery, and financial reform (RRR). Upon taking office, the Roosevelt administration launched a period of intense activity known as The Hundred Days, lasting from March 9 to June 16, 1933. During this period, Congress passed more than 15 major pieces of the New Deal legislation.
The New Deal Reform
FDR’s first step as president was to carry out reforms in banking and finance. By 1933, widespread bank failures had caused most Americans to lose faith in the banking system. On March 5, FDR declared a bank holiday and closed all banks to prevent further withdrawals. He persuaded Congress to pass the Emergency Banking Relief Act, which authorized the Treasury Department to inspect the country’s banks. The banks that were in good condition could re-open, but the banks that were found unable to re-pay their debts remained closed. The measure taken by the government revived the public's confidence in America's banks.
In 1933, Congress took another step to reorganize the banking system by passing the Glass-Steagall Act which established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The FDIC provided federal insurance for individual bank accounts of up to $5000, reassuring millions of bank customers that their money was safe. Congress and FDR also passed the Federal Securities Act to help regulate the stock market, which people had lost faith in after the crash of 1929. Federal Securities Act (1933) - Required corporations to provide complete information on all stock offerings and made them liable for any misrepresentations. In June of 1934, Congress created the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to regulate the stock market.
The New Deal Relief
The Roosevelt administration also implemented programs to provide relief farmers, perhaps the hardest hit by the depression. The Agriculture Adjustment Act (AAA) sought to raise crop prices by lowering production, which the government achieved by paying farmers to leave a certain amount of every acre of land unseeded. In some cases, crops were too far advanced for the acreage reduction to take effect. As a result, the government paid cotton growers $200 million to plow under 10 million acres of crops. It also paid hog farmers to slaughter 6 million pigs. The Roosevelt administration also aided other workers and attempted to stimulate economic recovery. An example of this is the Tennessee Valley Authority, established on May 18, 1933. Focusing on the badly depressed Tennessee River Valley, the TVA renovated five existing dams and constructed 20 new ones, created thousands of jobs, and provided flood controls, hydroelectric power, and other benefits to an impoverished region.
The administration also established programs to provide relief through work projects and cash payments. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), was one of those important programs as it put young men between the ages of 18-25 to work building roads, developing parks, planting trees, and helping in soil erosion and flood-control projects. By the time the program ended in 1942, about 3 million young men had passed through the Civilian Conservation Corps. The CCC did pay a small wage, only 30 dollars a month, and about 25 dollars of those dollars went automatically to the home of the worker's family. The program also supplied free food and uniforms and lodging in work camps. Many of the camps were located on the Great Plains, where, within a period of 8 years, the men of the CCC planted more than 200 million trees. This reforestation program was aimed at preventing another Dust Bowl.
The New Deal Recovery
The Public Works Project (PWA) created in June 1933 as part of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), provided money to states to create jobs chiefly in the construction of schools and other community buildings. It was headed by Harry Hopkins, the former chief of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. The WPA main objective was to create as many jobs as it possibly could. Between the years of 1935 and 1943, the WPA spent about $11 billion to give jobs to more than 8 million workers, many of which were unskilled.
The New Deal was a program designed by FDR and his “Brain Trust” to alleviate the problems of the Great Depression. The New Deal policies focused on three general goals: relief for the needy, economic recovery, and financial reform (RRR). Upon taking office, the Roosevelt administration launched a period of intense activity known as The Hundred Days, lasting from March 9 to June 16, 1933. During this period, Congress passed more than 15 major pieces of the New Deal legislation.
The New Deal Reform
FDR’s first step as president was to carry out reforms in banking and finance. By 1933, widespread bank failures had caused most Americans to lose faith in the banking system. On March 5, FDR declared a bank holiday and closed all banks to prevent further withdrawals. He persuaded Congress to pass the Emergency Banking Relief Act, which authorized the Treasury Department to inspect the country’s banks. The banks that were in good condition could re-open, but the banks that were found unable to re-pay their debts remained closed. The measure taken by the government revived the public's confidence in America's banks.
In 1933, Congress took another step to reorganize the banking system by passing the Glass-Steagall Act which established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The FDIC provided federal insurance for individual bank accounts of up to $5000, reassuring millions of bank customers that their money was safe. Congress and FDR also passed the Federal Securities Act to help regulate the stock market, which people had lost faith in after the crash of 1929. Federal Securities Act (1933) - Required corporations to provide complete information on all stock offerings and made them liable for any misrepresentations. In June of 1934, Congress created the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to regulate the stock market.
The New Deal Relief
The Roosevelt administration also implemented programs to provide relief farmers, perhaps the hardest hit by the depression. The Agriculture Adjustment Act (AAA) sought to raise crop prices by lowering production, which the government achieved by paying farmers to leave a certain amount of every acre of land unseeded. In some cases, crops were too far advanced for the acreage reduction to take effect. As a result, the government paid cotton growers $200 million to plow under 10 million acres of crops. It also paid hog farmers to slaughter 6 million pigs. The Roosevelt administration also aided other workers and attempted to stimulate economic recovery. An example of this is the Tennessee Valley Authority, established on May 18, 1933. Focusing on the badly depressed Tennessee River Valley, the TVA renovated five existing dams and constructed 20 new ones, created thousands of jobs, and provided flood controls, hydroelectric power, and other benefits to an impoverished region.
The administration also established programs to provide relief through work projects and cash payments. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), was one of those important programs as it put young men between the ages of 18-25 to work building roads, developing parks, planting trees, and helping in soil erosion and flood-control projects. By the time the program ended in 1942, about 3 million young men had passed through the Civilian Conservation Corps. The CCC did pay a small wage, only 30 dollars a month, and about 25 dollars of those dollars went automatically to the home of the worker's family. The program also supplied free food and uniforms and lodging in work camps. Many of the camps were located on the Great Plains, where, within a period of 8 years, the men of the CCC planted more than 200 million trees. This reforestation program was aimed at preventing another Dust Bowl.
The New Deal Recovery
The Public Works Project (PWA) created in June 1933 as part of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), provided money to states to create jobs chiefly in the construction of schools and other community buildings. It was headed by Harry Hopkins, the former chief of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. The WPA main objective was to create as many jobs as it possibly could. Between the years of 1935 and 1943, the WPA spent about $11 billion to give jobs to more than 8 million workers, many of which were unskilled.