Research Guides: National Recovery Administration (NRA) and the New Deal: A Resource Guide: Introduction (2024)

Research Guides: National Recovery Administration (NRA) and the New Deal: A Resource Guide: Introduction (1)

The Great Depression was a global crisis in the 1930's affecting all countries including the United States. One quarter of the work force, was out of work and those fortunate enough to have jobs worked under unfavorable conditions. Overproduction in the 1920's led to inflation, and in 1929 the Wall Street Crash flattened the United States' economy. This infamous catastrophe resulted in a level of production in 1933 significantly less than what it had been just four years earlier.

In the United States, there were various attempts to improve the country's economy including the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) chartered by the Herbert Hoover administration in 1932 where aid was given to state and local governments and loans were made to banks, railroads, farm mortgage associations, and other businesses. In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt became president and he began pushing legislation collectively called the "New Deal."

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)

Signed into law on June 16, 1933by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, this Act was administered in part by the National Recovery Administration (NRA), which was established after the passage of NIRA as an independent agency by Executive Order (EO) 6173.

One of several "New Deal" programs, NIRA was broadly intended to spread available work among a larger number of workers by a) limiting hours and launching a public works program and b) increasing individuals' purchasing power by establishing minimum wage rates. Generally speaking, NIRA legalized collective bargaining and exempted businesses from anti-trust laws that barred anticompetitive practices. The proposition and enforcement of Codes of Fair Competition were left to trade associations of specific industries. In a short two years, 557 Codes were approved by the President, and hundreds more were proposed and either revised or not approved. However, the Act was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in May 1935 with the Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States decision [295 U.S. 495 (1935)], and was abolished January 1, 1936, by EO 7252.

Research Guides: National Recovery Administration (NRA) and the New Deal: A Resource Guide: Introduction (2024)

FAQs

What was the main purpose of the National Recovery Administration NRA )? ›

National Recovery Administration (NRA), U.S. government agency established by Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt to stimulate business recovery through fair-practice codes during the Great Depression.

What did the NRA do with the New Deal? ›

The National Recovery Administration

The idea behind the NRA was simple: representatives of business, labor, and government would establish codes of fair practices that would set prices, production levels, minimum wages, and maximum hours within each industry. The NRA also supported workers' right to join labor unions.

Why was NRA unconstitutional? ›

In 1935, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously declared that the NRA law was unconstitutional, ruling that it infringed the separation of powers under the United States Constitution.

What was the main reason the National Recovery Administration (NRA) failed? ›

The National Recovery Administration (NRA) failed largely because it required too much self-sacrifice on the part of industry, labor, and the public. The Agriculture Adjustment Act (AAA) proposed to solve the farm problem by subsidizing American farm exports overseas.

Why was the NRA so important? ›

The NRA has been described as influential in shaping American gun control policy. The organization influences legislators' voting behavior through its financial resources and ability to mobilize its large membership.

What is the NRA main goal? ›

The Lasting Legacy of Firearms

Church and Gen. George Wingate formed the National Rifle Association in 1871. The primary goal of the association would be to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis." Since then, the NRA has been the premier firearms education organization in the world.

Why was the National Recovery Act so controversial? ›

The law had allowed the government to exercise unlimited authority and sanctioned a “completely centralized government.” Moreover, the Court thought the legislative branch had unconstitutionally delegated its authority to regulate interstate commerce to the executive branch and so had violated the principle of ...

How is the New Deal still in effect today? ›

The Soil Conservation Service remains as the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Perhaps the most notable New Deal program still in effect is the national old-age pension system created by the Social Security Act (1935).

Is NRA New Deal relief recovery or reform? ›

NATIONAL RECOVERY ADMINISTRATION (Recovery) The National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 created the NRA to promote economic recovery by ending wage and price deflation and restoring competition.

What problem did the NRA solve? ›

The NRA sought to protect workers by establishing fair trade codes among businesses and increasing production, which would help allow more people to be hired during the Great Depression, when the United States faced record unemployment levels. The NRA codes established fixed wages and prices for goods and services.

What is NRA fighting for? ›

Founded in 1975. NRA-ILA is committed to preserving the gun rights of all law-abiding individuals as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Is the NRA still around today? ›

While widely recognized today as a major political force and as America's foremost defender of Second Amendment rights, the NRA has, since its inception, been the premier firearms education organization in the world.

What was the purpose of the NRA New Deal? ›

One of several "New Deal" programs, NIRA was broadly intended to spread available work among a larger number of workers by a) limiting hours and launching a public works program and b) increasing individuals' purchasing power by establishing minimum wage rates.

Was the National Recovery Act a success or failure? ›

The codes did little to help recovery, and by raising prices, they actually made the economic situation worse. Under criticism from all sides, NRA did not last long enough to fully implement its policies.

Was the NRA a success? ›

The NRA did help solidify new and important norms regarding child labor, maximum hours, and other conditions of employment; it will never be known if the same progress could have been made had not industry been more or less hornswoggled into giving ground, using the antitrust laws as bait.

What was the purpose of the NRA quizlet? ›

The NRA was founded in 1871 to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis," or to improve marksmanship.

What was the purpose of the National Recovery Administration quizlet? ›

The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was the primary New Deal agency established by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) in 1933. The goal was to eliminate "cut-throat competition" by bringing industry, labor and government together to create codes of "fair practices" and set prices.

What did the National Industrial Recovery Act do in Quizlet? ›

The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) was a law passed by the United States Congress in 1933 to authorize the President to regulate industry in an attempt to raise prices after severe deflation and stimulate economic recovery.

What was the main goal of the public works administration? ›

The Public Works Administration: Purpose

The plan was to decrease unemployment and stimulate the economy to pull the country out of the Great Depression. Simultaneously, the PWA would create updated and increased infrastructure, including buildings, roadways, bridges, and dams.

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