IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 226 

Calling on the United States Postal Service to create a special exterior 

light display on March 4, 2008, to reignite public awareness and appreciation of the accomplishments of the New Deal and the legacy of 

those programs for our Nation today, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 4, 2007 

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 

referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Calling on the United States Postal Service to create a 

special exterior light display on March 4, 2008, to reignite public awareness and appreciation of the accomplishments of the New Deal and the legacy of those 

programs for our Nation today, and for other purposes. 

Whereas the New Deal was a comprehensive series of social 

and economic programs enacted during the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in response to 

the economic crisis known as the Great Depression; 

Whereas during the famous ‘‘First Hundred Days’’ that followed Roosevelt’s inauguration, between March and June 

1933, Congress passed fifteen major pieces of legislation; 


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•HCON 226 IH 

Whereas among the major New Deal initiatives eventually enacted were the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which provided funding to farmers to curtail production to stabilize 

prices; the National Industrial Recovery Act, which provided for codes of fair competition to regulate industry 

and, for the first time in American history, guaranteed 

the right of labor to bargain collectively; the Public 

Works Administration, which constructed roads, dams, 

and public buildings; the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which served to insure deposits in banks; the 

Tennessee Valley Authority, which provided for navigation, flood control, electricity generation, and economic 

development in the Tennessee River Valley, which was 

then one of the poorest and least developed regions in 

America; the Rural Electrification Administration, which 

was responsible for the development of a system to provide electricity to rural America; and the Social Security 

Administration, which established a secure pension system for senior citizens; 

Whereas two of the most memorable programs of the New 

Deal were the Civilian Conservation Corps, a special work 

program whose enrollees planted trees and fought forest 

fires, built public parks, drained swamps to fight malaria, 

restocked rivers with fish, worked on flood control 

projects, and engaged in many other initiatives that 

helped to conserve our environment and make recreation 

facilities available for millions of Americans, and the 

Works Progress Administration (later known as the 

Works Projects Administration), which provided employment for artists, musicians, actors, authors, and laborers, 

thereby helping to put millions of men, women, and youth 

back to work; 


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Whereas the New Deal created much of our Nation’s infrastructure, including roads, electrical systems, municipal 

power plants, water and sewage systems, and schools; 

Whereas the New Deal social programs laid the basis for 

many key programs in public education, public health, 

and public recreation; 

Whereas the New Deal economic policies established banking 

regulations, social security, and collective bargaining; 

Whereas men and women working in New Deal programs 

constructed many public buildings and parks; created 

public art, including murals, sculptures, and paintings; 

and made important contributions to literature, music, 

theater, and oral histories; and 

Whereas the New Deal restored the people’s faith in our Nation and its institutions: Now therefore be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That Congress calls on the United States 

3 Postal Service to create a special exterior light display on 

4 March 4, 2008, at all postal facilities which either were 

5 created by or are decorated with New Deal public art or 

6 interior fixtures, in order to reignite public awareness and 

7 appreciation of the accomplishments of the New Deal and 

8 the legacy of those programs for our Nation today, and 

9 in recognition of the men and women who left this enor10 mous legacy by participating in one or more of the New 

11 Deal public works programs. 

Æ 


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