Relief, Recovery, Reform FDR’s New Deal Relief, Recovery, Reform

Franklin Delano Roosevelt New York native New York State Senate Assistant Secretary to the Navy New York Governor (Democrat) Polio Wife = Eleanor Roosevelt Easily won election of 1932 In office 1933-1945 *4 Terms

Fireside Chats Addressed the nation by radio to explain to them what he was trying to accomplish First main chat over the Emergency Banking Relief Act Encouraged people to trust having their savings in banks Restored confidence in banking system Gave Americans confidence and hope

100 Days When Roosevelt took office most banks were closed and ¼ workers were unemployed First New Deal Beginning of term in which 15 major acts to resolved economic crisis were passed Banking Relief Needed to restore confidence in banks Emergency Banking Relief Act Bank Holiday Closing banks before Runs on Banks could put them out of business

Relief Programs

Emergency Banking Relief Act Required federal examiners to survey the nation’s banks and issue Treasury licenses to those that were financially sound Placed banks on a temporary holiday until they could examine soundness Gave citizens confidence in banking system and ended banking crisis

Civilian Conservation Corps Offered employment to unmarried 18-25 year olds Planted trees, fought forest fires, built reservoirs Men lived in camps near work areas Earned $30/month $25 of that was sent back to families Returned home after about 6-12 months Gave jobs to 3 million men

Public Works Administration Gave jobs to people building dams, sewer systems, highways, schools, and other gov’t facilities PWA awarded contracts to construction companies and insisted they not discriminate in hiring practices Broke down racial barriers in construction business

Civil Works Administration Hired workers directly instead of giving contracts like the PWA Built or improved airports, roads, school buildings, playgrounds and parks Employed 4 million people including 300,000 women in the winter of 33-34 Closed down after winter because Roosevelt was worried about how quickly the agency was spending money Spent 1 billion in 5 months

Recovery

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Provided Electricity, Flood Control, and Economic Development to the Tennessee Valley region The region included Tennessee, and portions of Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, N. Carolina & Virginia – areas that had been hit really hard by the Great Depression

Home Owners Loan Corps HOLC bought the mortgages of many homeowners who were behind on payments Restructured loans with longer terms of repayment and lower interest rates If people could not make loan payments they would foreclose on their house

Farm Credit Administration Help farmers refinance their mortgages Able to push interest rates lower Saved millions of farms from foreclosure

Agricultural Adjustment Act Prices for farm goods was low due to a surplus of goods Pay farmers to not raise certain livestock or not grow certain crops Acres were plowed and livestock was destroyed in an effort to raise prices of farm goods Farm surplus fell, food prices rose, and farmers income rose However, many were upset that while families didn’t have enough to eat crops were purposely being destroyed Another criticism was that poor tenant farmers, many were African Americans, lost jobs and homes when landlords took their fields out of production

National Industrial Recovery Act Focused on industry Codes of fair competition: set prices, established minimum wage, limited factories to 2 shifts per day, shortened work hours, and guaranteed right of workers to join unions Goal was to ensure more people could get jobs Those that agreed to these codes received signs to put in windows to encourage consumers to only buy from those stores Failed because you didn’t have to sign codes Many didn’t because not like unions Felt minimum wage required them to raise prices of goods Difficult for NRA, who ran the program, to administer codes

Reform

Glass-Steagall Act Separated commercial banking from investment banking Commercial banks that handle everyday deposits and lend money for mortgages could no longer use depositor's money to play the stock market

Securities Exchange Act Required companies that sold stock to provide complete and truthful information to investors Securities Exchange Commission regulates the stock market and prevents fraud & illegal trading

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Provides government insurance for bank deposits up to $250,000 Increased public confidence in banks

Impact of First New Deal Did not restore prosperity Reflected Roosevelt’s willingness to try to improve the economy Banks were reopened More people employed More people retained homes and farms Improved American spirit 2 programs unconstitutional: AAA and NRA