1. Legislation of the Progressive Era

2. Pendleton Civil Service Act 1883
The Pendleton Civil Service Act
government jobs should be awarded on the basis of merit
competitive exams rather than ties to politicians or political affiliation
Civil Service Commission
What category does it belong in?

3. Interstate Commerce Act 1887
Establishes right of federal government to supervise railroads
Five-member Interstate Commerce Commission
Difficulty regulating
Court establishes long, legal process
Resistance from railroads
1897, Supreme Court rules ICC can not set maximum rates

4. Sherman Antitrust Act 1890
Made it illegal to form a trust that interfered with competition
Vague language
Largely unsuccessful

5. National Reclamation Act 1902
Also known as Newlands Act
Funds from public land sales for large-scale irrigation projects
Roosevelt Dam, Arizona
Shoshone Dam, Wyoming
Sets precedent for Federal Government to manage water resources in the West

6. National Child Labor Committee 1904
Formed to bring attention to child labor
Investigators took pictures of children in harsh working environments
Organized exhibits
Helped get Keating-Owens passed (1916)
Prohibited transportation across state lines of goods produced with child labor
1918, unconstitutional by Supreme Court

7. Meat Inspection Act 1906
The book, The Jungle, prompted President Roosevelt
Meatpacking industry investigated
Public interest/safety
Set standards of cleanliness
Fed to inspect plants also absorb cost

8. Pure Food & Drug Act 1906
Put stop to sale of contaminated food/medicine
Truth in labeling required

9. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 1909
Civil Rights conference held in Niagara Falls
Advocates upset by lack of civil rights legislation passed by progressives
Included prominent white reformers
NAACP formed
Agenda: FULL equality

10. Underwood Act 1913 & the 16th Amendment
Underwood Act introduced to reduce tariffs
To compensate for lost revenue, an attachment provided for a graduated federal income tax (becomes the 16th Amendment, ratified in 1913)

11. Federal Reserve Act 1913 Divides nation into 12 districts
Each district controlled by a federal reserve bank
to issue currency in emergency
regional banks to use currency to loan $$ to customers
Fed banks to keep banks afloat
Put the banking system under federal supervision
Considered Wilson’s most significant accomplishment

12. 17th Amendment Provides for direct election of Senators
Prior to this, Senators appointed by State Legislature

13. Clayton Antitrust Act 1914
Strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act by clearly defining unfair business practices
Prohibits corps from buying/obtaining stock of another corp if it creates monopoly
Also exempted labor from antitrust laws
Called Magna Carta for labor
Allowed for: strikes, peaceful picketing, boycotts

14. Federal Trade Commission 1914
Considered the second, big antitrust legislation
“Watchdog” agency
To investigate potential violations of federal regulation
To enforce antitrust laws
To prevent unlawful suppression of competition

15. 18th Amendment 1919 Also called Prohibition
Makes illegal manufacture, sale & transportation of alcohol
Reformers thought of alcohol as prime cause of corruption
Prohibition was law from
Repealed by 21st Amendment

16. 19th Amendment 1920
Grants women the right to vote

17. Initiative, Referendum & Recall
Initiative: A bill placed on the ballot by the people (instead of the lawmakers/legislature)
Referendum: An Initiative voted on by the people (instead of the lawmakers/legislature)
Recall: Allows citizens to remove and replace a public official before the end of a term of office