Acts and Programs Flashcards
NY Tenement House Law
The NY State Tenement House Act of 1901 of the “New Tenement Law” was a housing reform law aimed at improving living conditions in NY’s tenement buildings. A tenement was any building that house three or more families, but the term came to mean housing for poor families that lacked proper amenities. The law set requirements for new buildings to improve light and air quality for residents, including external facing windows in each room, open courtyard, improved ventilation, indoor toilets, and better fire safety.
Comprehensive Zoning Resolution
The 1916 Zoning Resolution was written by George McAneny and Edward Bassett as a response to concerns about overdevelopment in New York City. The resolution divided the city into “zones” based on the primary activity in that area, and created building height and setback guidelines for each zone. It is considered the first citywide zoning code in the US.
Standard State Zoning Enabling Act
A model law developed to help states create zoning restrictions in their jurisdictions. This third draft contained important language defining a zoning commission and calling for a plan for zoning regulations. This was followed in 1927 by Standard City Planning Enabling Act to help states understand the organization and powers of city and regional planning commissions, the making of city and regional plans, and controlling the layouts of new subdivisions. These acts still provide the institutional structure for planning and zoning in many states.
Housing Act of 1934
Sparks suburbs. Presidents Franklin Roosevelt signed the National Housing Act into law. The law created the Federal Housing Administration and the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation as part of a broader attempt to revive the housing market during the Great Depression. The FHA standardized the 30-year, low interest mortgage, spurring a post-war housing boom in which national homeownership rate jumped to almost 70% of households and more and more Americans moved to suburbs.
US Housing Act of 1937
Roosevelt signs US Housing Act into law on 9/1/1937. The act, also know as the Wagner-Steagall Act, focused primarily on improving housing for poor Americans. It created the US Housing Authority, which loaned about $800 million between 1937 and 1941 to build low-rent housing developments. Much of the act was drafted by public housing advocate and planning educator Catherine Bauer Wurster, who also served as Director of Research and Information of the Housing Authority for two years.
Housing Act of 1949
Part of President Harry Truman’s Fair Deal initiative. Allocated funding to improve housing in urban areas, especially for Americas poor, in hopes of countering the effects of suburbanization. The act’s main elements included slum clearance and urban renewal, building more public housing, and expanding Federal Housing Authority mortgage insurance. The act has been criticized for ultimately eliminating more housing than created, as well as for destroying cheaper housing in minority neighborhoods and replacing it with more expensive alternatives that residents could not afford. However, it also made open-space land, neighborhood facilities, and basic water and sewer facilities eligible for federal assistance.
Housing Act of 1954
Managed by the Federal Housing Authority and provided funding to support urban renewal and slum prevention, as opposed to redevelopment. The legislation also created the 701 program, which funded planning assistance for communities, contributing to the spread of planning and comprehensive plans throughout the US. The 701 program originally targeted small local governments but it was so popular that it was gradually expanded to cover almost all jurisdiction types in the country.
Federal Aid Highway Act
President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal Aid Highway Act or National Interstate and Defense Highways Act, into law, with a plan to fund 41,000 miles of interstate highways over a period of 10 years. Under the act, 90% of construction costs came from a Highway Trust Fund, while states paid the remaining 10%. The act contributed to an increase in driving by Americans, as well as to the growth of the suburbs and the decline of cities.
Housing Act of 1961
The Housing Act of 1961 was approved by President John Kennedy, authorizing $4.9 billion in new funding for a wide array of housing programs. This included funding for acquiring open-space land, improving mass transportation, urban renewal, and building farm housing. The ASPO hailed the act as providing opportunities never before possible for coordinated planning of community development.
Urban Mass Transportation Act
President Lyndon Johnson’s Urban Mass Transportation Act provided funding for mass transportation projects in cities. It also created the Urban Mass Transportation Administration, later the Federal Transit Administration. The act shifted the primary mode of financing mass transportation projects to federal grants and loans.
Creation of CAPs
Title II of the federal Economic Opportunity Act established Community Action Programs, which were aimed at eliminating poverty. The programs were controversial because they gave the power for deciding how money would be allocated to a community’s impoverished population as opposed to elected officials. Although CAPs were generally ineffective because of high expectations and insufficient funding, among other issues, they raised awareness in the planning field of the need to include the community and look beyond mere physical redevelopment to social, economic, and political development as well.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965
Created the US Department of Housing and Urban Development as a cabinet-level agency. Robert Weaver was the first secretary of the department, making him the first African American appointed to a cabinet position in the US government. HUD’s mission is to make sure that there is equal access to housing and community-based employment opportunities, as well as to find new housing, public housing, and housing rehabilitation projects. The department also insures mortgages and protect consumers. HUD is an important source of financing for planning projects.
National Historic Preservation Act
The National Historic Preservation Act was signed to protect historic sites from development. It was a response to the impacts of urban renewal and highway construction on important landmarks in urban areas. The act also established the National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks Programs. Many communities now consider historic preservation through stand alone plans or as part of a larger comprehensive plan.
Fair Housing Act
Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968. The act prohibited discrimination against a property renter or buyer on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin. Gender was added in 1974 and disability or familial status in 1988. The act was heavily and contentiously debated in congress, but President Lyndon Johnson put pressure on legislators to pass it after the assassination of MLK Jr. Although the Fair Housing Act and other initiatives helped reduce racial segregation by community slightly over the following decades, many studies continue to show heavy segregation even now.
HUD Act of 1968
The Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 established Ginnie Mae to provide additional mortgage funding for moderate-income families. The act also allocated $250 million in funding for New Town projects. The towns funded under this initiative were Jonathan, MN; Park Forest South, IL; Flower Mound, TX; and St. Charles, MD.
