The Department of Housing and Urban Development
Bethany L Schultz
Central Michigan University
The History and Mission of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
The Housing Act of 1937, also known as the Wagner-Seagull Act. The Act provides subsidies paid from the U.S. government to local public housing agencies. The purpose is to improve living conditions for low income families (The Housing Act of 1937, 2011). According to writes D. Bradford Hunt, historians miss-understood the intent of the Housing Act of 1937. The Act was known to be the housing program comprised by amendments originating from real estate and conservative interests. Rather the 1937 Housing Act should be considered as a Progressive bill that maintained quite well in the legislative process (Hunt, 2005). The Housing Act of 1937 was developed out of the National Housing Act of 1934, which created the Federal Housing Administration. The primary lead in the developments was Catherine Bauer; she drafted most of the legislation, also served as Director in the U.S. Housing Authority. The purpose of the Housing Authority was to aid the control of payment subsidies (Wurster, 1934). Catherine Bauer, a well-known member of group of idealists, known as “housers”. Their commitment was to improve housing for the low income families. She significantly influenced the concept of social housing in the US and inspired others to pursue the need of public housing (Wurster, 1934). Legislators, Henry B. Steagall, Democrat of Alabama and Senator Robert F. Wagener, Democrat from New York introduced the legislation. The year of 1965 the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was established in an effort to re-organize the Public Housing Administration (US Housing Authority) and the House and Home Financing Agency. The Department of HUD is found in Public Law 89-174. HUD is a cabinet level department in the Executive
Bibliography: Federal Register. (2011, Decemeber 12). Retrieved December 12, 2011, from Housing and Urban Development Department, Agency: http://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/housing-and-urban-development-department The Housing Act of 1937. (2011, December 1). Retrieved December 1, 2011, from Wikipedia Foundation, Inc: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_Act_of_1937 US Government. (2011, December 5). Retrieved December 5, 2011, from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD Hunt, D. B. (2005). Was the 1937 U.S. Housing Act a Pyrrhic Victory? Journal of Planning History, 195-221. Wurster, C. B. (1934). Modern Housing. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.