CHRONOLOGYgff

The timeframes which define the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era are somewhat arbitrary. Conventionally, the Gilded Age starts with the end of Reconstruction; but although we could reasonably say that Reconstruction began immediately with the end of the Civil War, it is not so clear when it ended. However the social welfare programs which we are interested in go back at least as far as the early years of the Civil War itself. Given this interpretative license, we are, somewhat arbitrarily, beginning our Timeline with the year 1862, when the first Civil War pension law was enacted by Congress. Since our purpose here is to trace the connections between the GAPE and the New Deal of Franklin Roosevelt, we are extending our timeline, again somewhat arbitrarily, to the death of Franklin Roosevelt in April 1945. Included in the hundreds of date-entries between these two points is a great deal of information about political and social developments which are in somewhat usefully loose way related to the development of the social insurance programs of the New Deal Era.    1800s February 1862 Congress enacts the first specific pension system for Union Civil War soldiers. The program paid benefits to veterans disabled in the war. 1872 The American Public Health Association was organized. During its early years this organization was composed largely of administrative health officers who were concerned with public health in cities, States, and with the responsibilities of the Federal Government in this field. 1875 The first private pension plan in American industry was adopted by American Express. It provided benefits for employees 60 years of age or over who had 20 years service with the company and were incapacitated for further performance of duty. 1881 Germany's Emperor, William the First, in a ground-breaking letter to the German Parliament, proposed the adoption of old-age social insurance. 1882 The first major employee-sponsored mutual benefit association was established by the Northern Pacific Railway Beneficial Association which developed a program of complete medical care and other benefits financed by employer-employee payments. 1883 Germany enacted a pioneer law on national compulsory health and maternity insurance for industrial workers and their families. 1888 Austria adopted compulsory health insurance legislation. 1889 Germany became the first nation in the world to adopt an old-age social insurance program. Designed by Germany's Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, the idea was first put forward, at Bismarck's behest, in 1881. 1889 The International Congress of Industrial Accidents assembled in Paris. This was the forerunner to the International Social Security Association (ISSA). The Congress established the Permanent International Committee on Social Insurance. 1891 Hungary adopted compulsory health insurance legislation. 1894 The first statutory retirement system for teachers was adopted in New York City. 1894 A school health program was inaugurated in Boston as a means of controlling communicable diseases. 1895 Finland adopted an accident compensation law. 1896 The first statewide legislation for teachers' pensions was enacted in New Jersey. 1896 Fidelity Mutual Life Insurance Company became the first American life insurance organization to provide disability benefits. 1897 The first State law to provide medical and surgical aid for crippled children was enacted by Minnesota. 1897 Great Britain adopted accident compensation laws. 1898 Denmark and Italy adopted accident compensation laws. 1898 A workmen's compensation bill was defeated in the New York State legislature. 1898 The National Voluntary Old Age Insurance Institution was organized in Italy. 1898 The first State law in the USA providing pensions for the blind was enacted in Ohio.  1900s 1900 Spain enacted an accident compensation law. 1901 The Netherlands, Greece and Sweden adopted accident compensation insurance laws. Belgium inaugurated the Ghent system of unemployment insurance, under which subsidies were granted from public funds to trade unions which provided "out of work" benefits for their members. 1902 The first State workmen's compensation law was enacted in Maryland; it was declared unconstitutional in 1904. 1903 Illinois passed a law authorizing special pensions for the blind. 1905 France established a system of government subsidies to voluntary mutual aid associations offering unemployment benefits to their members. 1905 Workmen's compensation legislation was defeated in Illinois. 1906 The American Association for Labor Legislation (AALL) was founded. 1907 The first Federal employment service (forerunner of the United States Employment Service) was created in the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, Department of Commerce and Labor. 1908 A workmen's compensation system was established for civilian employees of the Federal Government. 1908 Noncontributory pensions were instituted in Great Britain by the Old-Age Pensions Act. 1909 Credit Unions first acquired legal status in the U.S. when the Massachusetts legislature passed a law providing for the chartering and organization of credit unions. 1909 The first public commission on aging was established in Massachusetts. 1909 A new science, geriatrics, came into being. 1909 Norway introduced a compulsory sickness insurance system. 1909 A Conference on the Care of Dependent Children was held in Washington, D.C. at the invitation of President Theodore Roosevelt. This was the first of the White House Conferences on child welfare. 1909 The first Federal old-age pension bill was introduced in Congress.  1910s 1910 Health insurance plans, which offered medical protection in the form of medical care for industrial workers in isolated areas, and disability benefits, were first introduced by commercial and nonprofit organizations. 1910 The first major survey of the economic conditions of the aged was conducted in Massachusetts. 1911 The National Insurance Act was passed in Great Britain. It provided for: 1) An unemployment fund from compulsory contributions by employees and employers, with the government contributing one-third; 2) A national health insurance system the cost of which was also shared by the workers, the employers and the government. 1911 Italy introduced a centralized national compulsory system of insurance for maternity of wage-earning women. 1911 The first State laws for "mothers' aid" (forerunner of aid to dependent children were enacted in Missouri and Illinois. 1911 The first workmen's compensation law to be held constitutional was enacted in Wisconsin. 1911 The first contributory system of pensions covering all State employees was established in Massachusetts. December, 1912 A Social Insurance Committee was created by the American Association for Labor Legislation. 1912 The Children's Bureau was established in the Department of Labor by an act of Congress. Among the functions of this Bureau was the safeguarding of the health of mothers and children. 1912 The first State minimum wage law was enacted by Massachusetts. 1912 The Progressive Party platform called for the protection of home life against the hazards of sickness, irregular employment and old-age through the adoption of a system of social insurance adapted to American use. 1912 The first division of child hygiene was established in a State Department of Health in Louisiana. June, 1913 The American Association for Labor Legislation sponsored the First National Conference on Social Insurance in Chicago, Illinois. 1913 The American Association for Labor Legislation's Social Insurance Committee issued a Report favoring a State-run compulsory health insurance system. 1913 A national pensions system was introduced in Sweden. 1914 The first State law providing old-age pensions was enacted in Arizona. It abolished almshouses and provided pensions for aged persons, persons incapable of self support because of physical infirmities, and certain mothers with children. It was declared unconstitutional by the State Supreme Court in 1916. 1914 The first text book on geriatrics was published. 1915 The American Association for Labor Legislation and the American Medical Association drafted a "Standard Bill" for compulsory health insurance modeled after German legislation. 1915 The first old-age pension legislation not challenged on the grounds of constitutionality was enacted in the Territory of Alaska. December, 1916 The American Medical Association Insurance Committee, headed by Dr. Alexander Lambert, recommended a compulsory State-run health insurance system. June, 1917 The American Medical Association's House of Delegates approved a resolution stating the principles to be followed in Government health insurance plans. October, 1917 The War Risk Insurance Act was passed. This legislation set up the first government life insurance program. 1917 The first Federal legislation establishing grant-in-aid provisions for vocational education was enacted. 1917 The first State Department of Welfare was established in Illinois. 1917 A cooperative Federal-State program of cash grants for public health services was inaugurated. November, 1918 California voters defeated a referendum to permit the establishment of a State health insurance plan. 1918 The Employment Service was established as a unit in the Department of Labor to help place workers in vital industries. 1918 The first Federal grants to States for public health services, for prevention and control of venereal diseases were instituted. April, 1919 The New York State Assembly defeated a health insurance bill previously approved by the State Senate. 1919 The International Labor Organization, a League of Nations agency, was established. It was made responsible for dealing with the general subject of Social Security. 1919 John R. Commons and Arthur J. Altmeyer wrote an article, "The Health Insurance Movement in the United States." This was an appendix to a report on Health Insurance and Old-age Pensions issued by the Ohio Health and Old-age Insurance Commission.  1920s 1920 A Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund was established for Federal employees. June, 1920 The Vocational Rehabilitation Act (commonly called the Smith-Fess Act) was one of the first Federal grant-in-aid programs passed by Congress. It was originally conceived as a vocational training and counseling program for industrially-injured civilians. (The restoration of medical and physical ailments were not introduced as parts of this program until 1943.) 1920 The American Medical Association made its first official declaration of opposition to any compulsory scheme of health insurance controlled by any State or the Federal Government. 1921 The Sheppard-Towner Act was enacted. It provided Federal grants to States to promote maternal and infant welfare and hygiene for a specified number of years. March 5, 1923 Montana's Old-age Pension Law was enacted. It was the first such State law to withstand the test of constitutionality. 1923 Old-age assistance laws were passed in Pennsylvania and Nevada. They were later declared unconstitutional. 1923 President Harding was unsuccessful in his attempt to establish a Department of Education in Welfare. 1924 Chile adopted the first national compulsory insurance law in the Western Hemisphere. 1925 Old age pension benefits and compulsory insurance for widows and orphans were introduced in Great Britain with the enactment of the Contributory Pensions Act of 1925. 1926 The Japanese National Health Insurance Law of 1922 became operative. 1927 The International Conference of National Unions of Mutual Benefit Societies and Sickness Insurance Funds was established at Brussels. 1927 The American Association for Old-age Security was established by Abraham Epstein. 1927 The Federal Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act set up a workmen's compensation program for certain maritime and related industries workers who could not be covered under State programs. 1927 The Committee on the Costs of Medical Care (CCMC) was "organized to study the economic aspects of the prevention and care of sickness, including the adequacy, availability. 1929 In June, the Sheppard-Towner Act was allowed to expire. (See above in 1921.) 1929 State laws for workmen's compensation were in effect in all but four States.  1930s January 1, 1930 The California Old-age Pension Law, which was mandatory and Statewide in its application, became effective. June 1, 1930 The Wyoming Old-age Pension Law became effective. July 21, 1930 The Veterans Administration was established by Executive Order. 1930 The census reported 6,634,000 persons (5.4% of the population) over 65. 1931 The American Medical Association established its Bureau of Medical Economics indicating its growing interest in the economic problems of medical care. January 29, 1932 The first State unemployment insurance law was enacted in Wisconsin. July, 1932 The Reconstruction Finance Corporation was given authority to make loans and advances to States for relief purposes. October, 1932 The Committee on the Costs of Medical Care's report endorsed group practice and voluntary health insurance. The report recommended State-sponsored medical care supported by taxes or insurance for the medically indigent. The AMA called the idea cumbersome and bureaucratic. 1932 The American Federation of Labor endorsed social insurance. 1932 President Hoover recommended that the concentration of health education and recreational activities be incorporated into a single executive department. March 4-June 16, 1933 During the Roosevelt Administration's first "Hundred Days", Congress committed the country to extraordinary reforms with the Federal Government assuming responsibility for the welfare of millions of unemployed. The primary aim of all the legislation was recovery. May 11, 1933 Senator Morris Sheppard of Texas introduced three bills designed to set up a Federal Credit Union system. May 12, 1933 The Federal Emergency Relief Administration was created with an appropriation of $500,000,000. It was authorized to match the sums allotted for the relief of unemployed by State and local governments with Federal funds. The measure providing for the first direct grants to States for unemployment relief was expanded to provide medical attention and medical supplies to recipients of unemployment relief programs. May 12, 1933 The Agriculture Adjustment Act created the Agricultural Adjustment Administration. May 18, 1933 The first significant use of the term "Social Security" came about when the American Association for Old-age Security became the American Association for Social Security. June 6, 1933 The Wagner-Peyser Act was enacted to establish a national employment system. It provided Federal grants to States that affiliated their employment services with the United States Employment Service. The latter was established as a separate bureau in the Labor Department to administer the Act. June 16, 1933 National Industrial Recovery Act set up the National Recovery Administration. June 16 1933 The Public Works Administration was established. June 16 1933 The Glass-Steagall Banking Reform Act was passed. Fall of 1933 Upton Sinclair launched his EPIC (End Poverty in California) movement. November 1933 The Civilian Works Agency was set up. 1933 The American Hospital Association endorsed hospital prepayment plans and established a list of essentials which should characterize such plans. This led to the establishment of Blue Cross. 1933 Federal Rules and Regulations No. 7 defined policies and procedures under which medical care might be given to those receiving unemployment relief in the States. January 1934 Dr. Francis Townsend and Robert Clements set up the organization Old-age Revolving Pensions, Ltd. February 1934 A bill was introduced in Congress which provided for a Federal excise tax on employer payrolls, to be offset by employer contributions to State unemployment insurance funds. June 6, 1934 Congress established the U.S. Employment Service which, jointly with the States, established and maintained employment agencies. June 8, 1934 Federal legislation to promote economic security was recommended in the President's Message to Congress which stated: "Among our objectives I place the security of men, women and children of the nation first." June 26, 1934 The Federal Credit Union Act of 1934 was approved, making it possible to establish federally-chartered credit unions in all of the United States. The Federal Credit Union Section was established in the Farm Credit Administration. June 27, 1934 The Railroad Retirement Act of 1934 was approved by the president. The Act, to be administered by the Railroad Retirement Board, provided for retirement and disability annuities and lump-sum payments to survivors. June 29, 1934 The President created the Committee on Economic Security to study the problems relating to economic security and to make recommendations for a program of legislation. (This was Executive Order No. 6757.) July 24, 1934 Dr. Edwin E. Witte accepted the position of Executive Director of the Committee on Economic Security. August 13, 1934 First meeting of the President's Committee on Economic Security. October 1, 1934 The first Federal Credit Union charter was issued to a group of people in Texarkana, Texas. November 5, 1934 Roosevelt announces the members of a 23-member Advisory Council to the Committee on Economic Security, with Frank P. Graham, President of the University of North Carolina, as Chairman. November 14-15, 1934 The National Conference on Economic Security was held in the District of Columbia. Representatives of employers, labor and the public attended. 1934 Commercial insurance against the costs of hospitalization was first offered by private insurance companies. 1934 New York was the first State to pass an Enabling Act permitting the establishment of nonprofit hospital service corporations under the State Insurance Commissioner. 1934 The United States Government became a member of the International Labor Organization. January 4, 1935 Roosevelt's message to Congress called for legislation to provide assistance for the unemployed, the aged, destitute children and the physically handicapped. January 15, 1935 The Committee on Economic Security released its Report to President Roosevelt. January 17, 1935 The Committee on Economic Security's recommendations, embodied in the Economic Security Bill, were introduced in the 74th Congress. Recommendations included Federal old-age insurance, Federal-State public assistance and unemployment insurance programs, and extension of public health, maternal and child health, services for crippled children and child welfare services, and vocational rehabilitation but not health insurance. S.1130 was introduced in the Senate by Senator Robert F. Wagner; H.R. 4120 was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Robert L. Doughton; and H.R. 4142 was introduced by Representative David J. Lewis. January 21, 1935 Hearings began before the House Committee on Ways and Means on the Economic Security Bill. The Senate Finance Committee began hearings the next day. February 4, 1935 The American Medical Association's House of Delegates met in an emergency session and took a position against compulsory health insurance. March 1, 1935 Congressman Frank Buck (Calif.) made the motion to change the name of the Economic Security Bill to the Social Security Bill. The motion was carried by a voice vote from the House Ways and Means Committee. April 4, 1935 The Social Security Bill was introduced in the House of Representatives with a report. This bill (H.R. 7260) replaced the Economic Security Bill. April 8, 1935 The Works Progress Administration created by the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act, established a Resettlement Administration and a National Youth Administration to administer emergency work relief programs for the unemployed. April 19, 1935 The Social Security Bill (H.R. 7260) was passed by the House of Representatives, 372 to 33 (25 not voting). Against were 13 Democrats, 18 Republicans and 2 Farm Labor. May 6, 1935 The Railroad Retirement Act of 1934 was declared unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court. May 6, 1935 The President signed an Executive Order terminating the Federal Emergency Relief Administration and creating the Works Progress Administration. May 13, 1935 The Social Security Bill (H.R. 7260) was reported out by the Senate Finance Committee. May 27, 1935 The National Industrial Recovery Act was invalidated by the Supreme Court. June 19, 1935 The Social Security Bill was passed by the Senate Finance Committee with amendments, by a vote of 7 to 6. (Against, were 5 Republicans, 1 Democrat and 12 who did not vote.) June 1935 The health report of the Committee on Economic Security, "Risks to Economic Security Arising out of Illness," was filed but not published. July 5, 1935 The National Labor Relations Act was enacted. July 15, 1935 The first compulsory health insurance bill was introduced in Congress, the "Epstein bill" sponsored by Senator Arthur Capper, (Kansas). August 9, 1935 The Social Security Bill (H.R. 7260) was sent to the President after acceptance of the final conference report by the House and the Senate. August 14, 1935 The Social Security Act (H.R. 7260, Public Law No. 271, 74th Congress) became law with the President's signature at approximately 3:30 p.m. on a Wednesday. August 15,1935 The President created the Interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities. The committee was composed of the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Chairman, Assistant Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture, and the Second Assistant Secretary of Labor (Arthur J. Altmeyer). August 23,1935 The Senate confirmed the President's nomination of the original members of the Social Security Board, John G. Winant, Chairman (for six years), Arthur J. Altmeyer, (for four years), and Vincent M. Miles, (for two years). August 26,1935 Appropriations for Social Security died with Senator Huey Long's "swan song" filibuster. August 27,1935 The Social Security Board moved into the Department of Labor building at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue. (By the end of the year the Board had 160 employees.) August 29,1935 The Railroad Retirement Act of 1935 was approved by the President. August 29, 1935 The original work week for the Social Security Board was set at 39 hours - 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., plus four hours on Saturday. September 14, 1935 First meeting of the members of the Social Security Board. October 1, 1935 The existence of the Committee on Economic Security terminated when the Social Security Board came into operation as the permanent agency to administer the legislation of the Social Security Act. The Board was located in Room 6111, Department of Labor Building, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, Washington, D.C., Telephone Number District 6-450. October 16, 1935 The Social Security Board received funds from the Department of Labor for preliminary operations. November 1, 1935 Henry P. Seidemann was appointed the Coordinator of the Social Security Board. November 6, 1935 The Committee on Economic Security submitted a Final Report on its studies to the President. November 15, 1935 The first unemployment compensation law, under the Social Security Act, that of the District of Columbia, was approved for grants by the Social Security Board. November 27, 1935 The Social Security Board appointed Frank Bane, Executive Director, and John J. Corson, Assistant Executive Director. November 1935 Appointments made: Wilbur J. Cohen, Assistant Economic Analyst; Mrs. Leona V. MacKinnon, Office of the Board; Mrs. Sarah Napier, Bureau of Business Management; James V. Bennett, Director, Bureau of Business Management; R. Gordon Wagenet, Director, Bureau of Unemployment Compensation. December 2, 1935 The Social Security Board appointed a Field Office Committee to determine the best locations for offices to serve the public covered by the Social Security Act. December 20, 1935 The first State plan for old-age assistance under the Social Security Act--Michigan's--was approved by the Social Security Board. December 23, 1935 Wisconsin's plans for old-age assistance, aid to the needy blind and for dependent children were approved by the Social Security Board. January 1, 1936 An Informational Service was established under the Social Security Board. January 1, 1936 The Federal unemployment tax of one percent became applicable to employers of eight or more, with a credit offset for contributions paid to State unemployment funds. January 15, 1936 Murray W. Latimer was appointed the Director, Bureau of Federal Old-Age Benefits. January 1936 Miss Jane Hoey was appointed Director, Bureau of Public Assistance. February 11, 1936 The first appropriation act was made to implement the Social Security Act with funds for organization of the Social Security Board, and for the administration of the Federal program and grants to States. February 13, 1936 The first Public Assistance checks were mailed (5 States). February 14, 1936 The Social Security Board approved twelve regional areas and twelve regional offices for its field office setup. February 16, 1936 Thomas H. Eliot was appointed as General Counsel. Walter Hamilton was appointed the Director of the Bureau of Research and Statistics. Louis Resnick was appointed the Director, Informational Services. February 1936 Public assistance payments to recipients were first made with Federal participation under the Social Security Act for old-age assistance (17 States), aid to dependent children (10 States), aid to blind (9 States). March 5, 1936 The first Federal grant for administration of a State unemployment insurance law (New Hampshire) was certified by the Social Security Board. March 1936 William L. Mitchell was appointed the Director, Bureau of Business Management, replacing James V. Bennett who left. April 1936 The Social Security Board moved into its own headquarters on 1712 G Street, Washington, D.C. (The Board had been in the Department of Labor building, but was later moved to this 1712 G Street which was the old Department of Labor building.) The Board offices were located on the 7th floor. May 1, 1936 The first seven regional offices of the Social Security Board were opened; the remaining five were opened by the end of the year. May 8, 1936 The following appointments of Regional Directors of the Social Security Board were made: John Pearson, Region I (Boston); Anna Rosenberg, Region II (New York) ; William L. Dill, Region III (Philadelphia); Fred Wilcox, Region VIII (Minneapolis); Ed McDonald, Region IX (Kansas City); Oscar Powell, Region X (San Antonio). May 19, 1936 Clowacki R. Parker was appointed the Regional Director of the Social Security Board, Washington, D.C. May 21, 1936 Administrative Order No. 11 defined the function of a new regional official, the Executive Assistant. Order No. 11 was revised on July 20th and again on October 5, 1937. Helen Harper was appointed the Regional Director of Region XI, Denver. June 1, 1936 Benedict Crowell was appointed the Regional Director, Region V, (Cleveland). June 2, 1936 The Social Security account number, which contained no significant facts about the employee other than the State of registry, was approved by the Social Security Board. June 8, 1936 B.F. Ashe was appointed the Regional Director, Region VII (Birmingham). Early June, 1936 John G. Winant, Chairman of the Social Security Board, attended the International Labor Organization Conference as a U.S. Government Labor Organization delegate and as vice-president of the Conference itself. June 15, 1936 Henry McCarthy was appointed the Regional Director (Chicago). June 30, 1936 Thirty-six States and the District of Columbia, in cooperation with the Bureau of Public Assistance, had developed public assistance plans which met Federal requirements, and were receiving Federal grants-in-aid to help finance one or more of the three types of public assistance included in the Social Security Act. August 17, 1936 An unemployed worker--Neils B. Ruud--in Madison, Wisconsin, received the first unemployment benefit check paid under a State law. The amount was $15.00. August 1936 Publication of the Social Security Journal, Selected Current Statistics, began on a monthly basis. September 2, 1936 Henry P. Seidemann was named to succeed Murray W. Latimer as Director, Bureau of Federal Old-Age Benefits, and took office on September 4. September 12, 1936 The Office of Coordinator of the Board was discontinued. His duties to supervise the field activities of the Bureau of Federal Old-Age Benefits and the Bureau of Auditing and Accounts, were transferred to the Office of the Executive Director. September 15, 1936 The Washington State Unemployment Compensation Law was declared unconstitutional by the State Supreme Court. September 25, 1936 The Post Office agreed to help with enumeration for old-age benefits. (Henry P. Seidemann said this was agreed to on September 15.) September 27, 1936 In his presidential campaign, Governor Alfred M. Landon denounced the old-age insurance system. He spoke of Social Security as being a "cruel hoax." September 28-30, 1936 The International Conference of National Unions of Mutual Benefit Societies, etc., became the International Social Insurance Conference in Prague, Czechoslovakia. September 30, 1936 John G. Winant resigned as a member and Chairman of the Social Security Board as a protest against the Republican attacks on the Social Security Act. (On the 28th he tendered his resignation; on the 30th President Roosevelt accepted it.) October 14, 1936 The first field office was opened at Austin, Texas. October 19, 1936 The first training course (10 days) was conducted in Baltimore, Md. October 27, 1936 The Interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities was formally established by Executive Order No. 7481. October 31, 1936 The Bureau of Federal Old-Age Benefits moved from 1712 G Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. to 1724 F Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. November 4, 1936 Seven more Social Security Board field offices, mostly in larger cities, were opened. November 5, 1936 The Department of the Treasury's Decision 4704 was approved, providing the authority both for the assignment of Social Security identification numbers to employers and account numbers to employees. November 9, 1936 The establishment of 57 additional field offices, primarily for the administration of old-age benefits, was announced. The Baltimore office for record-keeping operations was opened with 18 persons. By the end of the month there were 991 employees. November 16, 1936 John G. Winant accepted a temporary reappointment as Chairman of the Social Security Board. November 16, 1936 Approximately three million employer applications (Form SS-4) were distributed to employers around the country and by November 24, 1936, the larger portion of the employer forms were returned. November 23, 1936 The United States Supreme Court upheld, in a 4-to-4 decision, the constitutionality of the New York State Unemployment Insurance Law. November 24, 1936 Applications for Social Security account numbers (Forms SS-5) were distributed by the Post Office Department to persons who were working or expected to work in jobs covered by old-age insurance. November 1936 All States, the District of Columbia, Alaska and Hawaii were actively participating in the program of maternal and child health services under the Social Security Act. December 1, 1936 On Tuesday, December 1, 1936, the Baltimore office added a night shift which went on duty at 4:00 p.m. and stopped work at 11:30 p.m. The daytime work shift was 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., plus four hours on Saturdays. The total work week was 39 hours. December 7, 1936 Judge George C. Sweeney of Massachusetts upheld the right of Congress to levy a payroll tax on employers--Title IX of the Social Security Act. December 15, 1936 A three-judge Federal Court in Alabama granted a permanent injunction restraining the State from collecting the tax provided by the State Unemployment Compensation law. January 1, 1937 Workers began to acquire credits toward old-age insurance benefits. Employers and employees became subject to a tax of one percent of wages on up to $3,000 a year. Lump-sum payments were first made payable to eligible workers, their survivors or their estates. The Federal unemployment tax payable by employers of 8 or more was increased to two percent of payroll. January 14, 1937 Judge David J. Davis of Alabama upheld the right of Congress to levy a payroll tax on employers--Title IX of the Social Security Act. January 21, 1937 The Department of the Treasury granted a 60-day extension of time for first quarterly payment of payroll taxes under Title IX of the Social Security Act. February 1, 1937 Judge Learned Hand filed the opinion of the Second Circuit in the case of Theberge vs. United States. The case involved an action on a war risk insurance policy under which the claimant had the burden of proving that he was permanently and totally disabled when he was mustered out of the service and that any work in which he was engaged, subsequent to the lapse of the policy, substantially aggravated his malady. The opinion (no insurance against suffering) became the initial approach of Social Security to "pain" cases. February 5, 1937 The House passed the Appropriation Bill for "independent" offices (for fiscal year 1937-1938); this included $254,000,000 for the Social Security Board. February 1937 Early February 1937 Walter Hamilton left the position of Director of the Bureau of Research and Statistics. He was replaced by Ewing Clague. February 8, 1937 The First Annual Report of the Social Security Board submitted to Congress. February 10, 1937 Enactment of New York Social Security Bill made all provisions of Federal Act effective in New York. February 12, 1937 Four new field offices of the Social Security Board were opened. February 19, 1937 President Roosevelt accepted the final resignation of John G. Winant from the Social Security Board and appointed Arthur J. Altmeyer as the new Chairman. Murray W. Latimer was nominated as the third member of the Social Security Board to fill the vacancy created by Mr. Winant's resignation. February 22, 1937 The Senate Finance Committee ordered a study of whether the accumulation of reserves for old-age benefits was necessary and recommended the establishment of an Advisory Council to study the problems and report to the Senate Finance Committee and the Social Security Board. February 27, 1937 The first claims under Title II of the Social Security Act were adjudicated and forwarded to the Social Security Board on February 27. The first claims were actually paid in March. March 1, 1937 Leroy Hodges became the Director of the Bureau of Old-Age Insurance. He succeeded Henry P. Seidemann who resigned on February 28, 1937. March 11, 1937 The Social Security Board announced approval of eight lump-sum payments since the inauguration of the Social Security Act's old-age benefits program began on January 1. March 16, 1937 The twenty-five millionth old-age benefit Master Name Card was entered in the files of the Social Security Board. March 19, 1937 The Social Security Board held a conference with its twelve Regional Directors in Washington. March 30, 1937 The Social Security Board, through the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation, the Department of labor and the United States Employment Service, agreed to act as a single agency in all matters affecting a State employment service. April 12, 1937 The Wagner Labor Act was declared constitutional by the Supreme Court. April 26, 1937 The Supreme Court agreed to review the Massachusetts case involving the payment of taxes under Title VIII of the Social Security Act. April 26, 1937 President Roosevelt withdrew from the Senate the name of Murray W. Latimer to be a member of the Social Security Board, at Mr. Latimer's request. April 27, 1937 The Social Security Board authorized, as an aid to State administration of unemployment compensation laws, the assignment of Social Security account numbers to employees 65 years of age and over who were covered by the State unemployment compensation laws but were not covered under Title II. April 30, 1937 Twelve new Bureau of Old-Age Benefits field offices opened during April, bringing the total number of field offices of 123. April 1937 The Social Security Board abandoned the District Office/Branch Office plan of organization and designated all sub-regional offices as field offices. May 10, 1937 The Social Security Board joined with a Special Committee on Social Security of the Senate Finance Committee in the appointment of an Advisory Council on Social Security. It consisted of representatives of labor and employers' organizations, as well as actuaries and economists, to advise and report specifically on the old-age benefits program and its extension to survivors of insured workers and to groups now excluded. May 24, 1937 In three decisions, the Supreme Court validated the unemployment insurance provisions of the Social Security Act and ruled old-age pensions were constitutional, (301 U.S. 495, 548, 619) in Steward Machine Company v. Davis; Helvering v. Davis; and Carmichael v. Southern Coal Company. June 15, 1937 The Social Security Board adopted its first regulation, Regulation No. 1, which governed disclosure of the records being created in the Social Security program. The Reg. was published in the Federal Register the following day and it governed SSA's philosophy of confidentiality for the next 40 years. June 24, 1937 The Railroad Retirement Act of 1937, which amended portions of the 1935 Act, was approved by the President. June 29, 1937 The President approved the Carriers Taxing Act of 1937, which repealed the Act of August 1935. The Act provided for income taxes on railroad employees and employee representatives and for excise taxes on carriers. June 30, 1937 Unemployment insurance legislation became nationwide with approved laws in all States. Illinois was the last State to pass such legislation. July 1, 1937 The Social Security Board field offices, of which 173 had been established, relieved the Post Office Department of the task of assigning employee account numbers. July 1, 1937 The President sent to the Senate nominations for 52 positions with the Social Security Board which required Senate confirmation. August 3, 1937 Employment service expansion to meet the needs of the unemployment compensation program was furthered by the first grant approved under the Social Security Act to West Virginia. August 6, 1937 The Senate confirmed the appointment of George E. Bigge of Rhode Island to fill the vacancy in the membership of the Social Security Board which had existed since John G. Winant's resignation. Bigge's appointment was for a term ending August 13, 1941. August 7, 1937 The Senate confirmed the last of the 52 nominees for Social Security Board for experts and attorney positions paying $5,000 or more a year. August 18, 1937 The appointment of Mary W. Dewson of New York to the Social Security Board was confirmed. She took the place formerly held by Vincent M. Miles of Arkansas, whose term of office had expired. Her appointment was to expire on August 13, 1943. August 24, 1937 The Unemployment Compensation appropriation, authorized to pay into unemployment trust funds of 15 jurisdictions amounts representing credit offset to which employers would have been entitled if these jurisdictions had had unemployment compensation laws, was approved by the Social Security Board on December 31, 1936. September 8, 1937 The Social Security Board authorized allotment of $4,000 for September to the Department of Commerce to assist the Bureau of the Census in financing the searching and furnishing of proof of age to persons desiring this information. September 17, 1937 The name "Old-Age Benefit Program", which was provided for under Title II of the Social Security Act was changed to "Old-Age Insurance Program" to distinguish it from old-age benefits under the assistance program. The Bureau of Federal Old-Age Benefits became the Bureau of Old-Age Insurance. November 5,6, 1937 The Social Security Advisory Council held its first meeting in Washington, D.C. The Council appointed an interim committee to discuss its activities with the Senate Special Committee on Social Security and with the Social Security Board. December 16, 1937 President Roosevelt recommended a series of technical amendments to the Social Security Act. 1937 The Technical Committee on Medical Care was established under the interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities. The Technical Committee was composed of staff members of the Children's Bureau, U.S. Public Health Service, and the Social Security Board. 1938 The Baltimore Federal Credit Union was chartered. January 1, 1938 The Federal unemployment tax payable by employers of eight or more employees was increased to three percent of payroll. Unemployment benefits first became payable in 22 States. February 1938 The report of the Technical Committee on Medical Care, "A National Health Program: A Summary," was published. March 1, 1938 John J.Corson was named Acting Director of the Bureau of Old-Age Insurance. He succeeded Leroy Hodges, who resigned as of February 28, 1938. March 2, 1938 Public Assistance grants to Oklahoma were suspended by the Social Security Board on the ground that administration of Oklahoma's State programs failed to comply with requirements of the Social Security Act as well as Oklahoma law. April 20, 1938 The Special Senate Committee to Investigate Unemployment and Relief recommended the transfer of the United States Employment Service from the Department of Labor to the Social Security Board. May 27, 1938 Public Assistance grants to Oklahoma were resumed, effective as of April 1. June 25, 1938 The Fair Labor Standards Act was enacted. It provided for minimum wages, child labor standards, and time and one-half for hours over 40 in a workweek, for workers coming under interstate commerce. June 25, 1938 The Crosser-Wheeler Act was enacted. It was to become effective July 1, 1939. State unemployment compensation agencies were to transfer to the Railroad Retirement Board the benefit rights and contributions for workers covered by the Railroad Insurance Act. June 29, 1938 The Wagner-Peyser Act was amended to specify that the annual Federal appropriation thereunder designate the amount to be apportioned among State employment systems. July 1, 1938 John J. Corson was named Director, Bureau of Old-Age Insurance. July 18-20, 1938 The National Health Conference was held in Washington under the auspices of the Interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities, to bring the problems of national health and certain recommendations for a national health program before professional groups and the public. August 30, 1938 Frank Bane resigned as Executive Director of the Social Security Board, effective November 1st Oscar M. Powell was appointed his successor. September 14, 1938 New Zealand passed the first act to protect an entire population by a complete set of cash benefits, financed by a universal income tax. September 16-17, 1938 At a special meeting, the American Medical Association's House of Delegates approved in principle tax-supported medicine for indigent and voluntary health insurance for those above the level of indigency. September 29, 1938 Public Assistance grants to Ohio for old-age assistance were discontinued by the Social Security Board on the grounds that Ohio's administration of the program was not in conformity with requirements of the Social Security Act. September 1938 All 51 jurisdictions were making old age assistance payments under the Social Security Act. November 8, 1938 An initiative measure narrowly defining the term "labor dispute" for purposes of all State statutes, thereby raising serious questions of conformity with Title IX of the Social Security Act, which specified that a State may not be certified by the Social Security Board for tax credit purposes if benefits are denied an individual who refuses to accept a position vacant by reason of a labor dispute. November 30, 1938 Public Assistance grants to Ohio for old-age assistance were resumed, retroactive to November 1, 1938, on evidence that State operation of the program had been brought into conformity with requirements of the Social Security Act. November 1938 Robert Barnett was named to head the Bureau of Business Management, within the Social Security Board. December 19, 1938 The Advisory Council on Social Security issued its report and recommendations on old-age insurance. December 30, 1938 Ellen S. Woodward took the oath of office as a member of the Social Security Board; she succeeded Mary W. Dewson who resigned December 10, 1938. January 1, 1939 Unemployment benefits became payable in 26 additional States, bringing the total number of jurisdictions paying to 49. January 14, 1939 Amendments to the Social Security Act were recommended in a report of the Special Senate Committee to Investigate Unemployment and Relief. January 16, 1939 The Social Security Board's report, "Proposed Changes in the Social Security Act," was transmitted by the President to Congress along with his message on Social Security. January 23, 1939 A Health Security Message of the President was transmitted to Congress, the report and recommendations of the Interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities. February 1, 1939 Public hearings on the Social Security act amendments were conducted by the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives. February 10, 1939 Tax Titles (VIII and IX, except Section 904) of the Social Security Act were repealed and reenacted as Chapter 9, Subchapters A and C (subsequently designated as Federal Insurance Contributions Act and Federal Unemployment Tax Act of the Internal Revenue Code. February 28, 1939 Senator Robert Wagner introduced S.1620 to create the National Health Act of 1939. A national compulsory health insurance for almost all employees and their dependents was proposed by this bill. Benefits were to include physician's services, hospitalization, drugs, and laboratory diagnostic services. Costs were to be covered through employer and employee contributions which were to have been deposited in a health insurance fund. The plan was to be administered through the States. No final action was taken on the bill--although hearings were held April 29-July 13. The bill died in committee. February 1939 The American Medical Association established a "National Physicians" Committee for the Extension of Medical Services, to fight the Wagner Bill. March 24, 1939 All States, the District of Columbia, Alaska, and Hawaii were actively participating in the program of crippled children's services under the Social Security Act. April 4, 1939 Public hearings on the Social Security act amendments were conducted by the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives. April 19, 1939 The Unemployment Compensation Amendment authorizing the annual appropriation of $80 million for grants to States for unemployment compensation administration was approved by the President April 25, 1939 The President's Reorganization Plan No. 1 was transmitted to Congress. June 7, 1939 The Federal Reorganization Act of 1939 was approved by the President. June 10, 1939 The Social Security Act Amendments of 1939 passed by the House of Representatives with minor changes. The vote was 364 to 2. June 30, 1939 Joseph L. Fay was named the Assistant Director of the Division of Accounting Operations, Bureau of Old-age and Survivors Insurance. July 1, 1939 Benefit payment operations were inaugurated under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act. The coverage of railroad employment of an interstate character under State unemployment compensation laws was terminated, and compensation for railroad unemployment occurring henceforth would be administered by the Railroad Retirement Board. July 1, 1939 The Federal Reorganization Act of 1939 became effective. Under this act, the Social Security Board was made part of the newly established Federal Security Agency. The United States Employment Service was transferred from the Department of Labor to the Social Security Board, consolidating the Employment Service with the unemployment compensation functions of the Social Security Board to become the Bureau of Employment Security. In the Federal Security Agency, the Social Security Board, the Public Health Service, the Civilian Conservation Corps, the National Youth Administration, and the Office of Education were integrated into one administrative unit. July 1, 1939 With the initiation of benefits in Illinois and Montana, unemployment benefits became payable in all 51 jurisdictions. July 12, 1939 The appointment of the first Federal Security Administrator, Paul V. McNutt, was confirmed by the Senate. McNutt took the oath of office on July 13, 1939. July 27, 1939 Unemployment benefits were suspended in South Dakota. The State's employment service offices were closed because the State legislature failed to appropriate the necessary amount of State funds for their operation. August 3,1939 Arthur J. Altmeyer was reappointed for a six-year term as the Chairman of the Social Security Board. August 5, 1939 The Social Security Act Amendments of 1939 accepted by the Senate after the amendments in disagreement had been reconciled in conference and accepted by the House of Representatives on August 4. August 10, 1939 The President signed the Social Security Amendments of 1939. The program was broadened to include dependents and survivors' benefits. Payment of monthly benefits was advanced to 1940. August 11, 1939 The Chairman of the Social Security Board was appointed to membership on the Committee on Economic Security by the President. August 11,1939 The Hurricane Work Exclusion Act was approved. It amended Title II of the Social Security Act. The act exempted from Federal insurance benefits and from the Federal Unemployment Tax Act and the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, services rendered prior to January 1, 1940, in the employ of an owner or tenant of land in salvaging timber or clearing brush and debris left by hurricanes. August 13,1939 Amendments to the Railroad Unemployment Insurance and the Railroad Retirement Acts and related legislation were approved. These brought about a more uniform coverage under social insurance measures for persons employed in certain types of coal mining operations which had previously been defined as constituting railroad employment. September 1939 The functions and personnel of the Office of the General Counsel were transferred to the Federal Security Agency. September 6, 1939 The Bureau of Old-Age Insurance became the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance. September 27, 1939 Unemployment benefit payments were resumed in South Dakota with the reopening of public employment offices. 1939 The first Statewide prepayment plans for physician's services were established by the State medical societies of California and Michigan.  1940s January 1, 1940 Monthly benefits first became payable under old-age and survivor's insurance to aged retired workers and their dependents and to survivors of deceased insured workers. The Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund was established as a separate account in the United States Treasury to hold the amounts accumulated under the old-age and survivors insurance program. Basic provisions for hearing and review instituted by the Social Security Board under authority to establish procedures, hold hearings, and take testimony in relation to determination of rights to old-age and survivors insurance benefits (Office of Appeals Council). January 18-20, 1940 The White House Conference on Children in a Democracy was held; Aid to Dependent Children was discussed. January 31, 1940 Ida M. Fuller became the first person to receive an old-age monthly benefit check under the new Social Security law. She paid in $24.75 between 1937 and 1939 on an income of $2,484. Her first check, dated January 31, was for $22.54. February 13, 1940 An Appeals Council, consisting of three members, was appointed by the Social Security Board to direct and supervise the holding of hearings on claims for old-age and survivors insurance benefits and to review decisions of referees, subject to review by the courts. Joseph McElvain was appointed the director. The staff of the Appeals Council included a Consulting Referee for the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance program as a whole and a Hearing Referee for each of the twelve regions. May 17, 1940 The Social Security Board established regulations relative to entitlement to and computation of benefits, adjustment of overpayments and underpayments, procedures and penalties. June 1940 All States, the District of Columbia, Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico were actively participating in programs providing child welfare services under the Social Security Act. June 30, 1940 The Federal Security Agency under the President's Reorganization Plan No. IV was enlarged to include the Food and Drug Administration, transferred from the Department of Agriculture, and St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Freedman's Hospital, Columbia Institution for the Deaf, and Howard University, transferred from the Department of the Interior. July 1940 The Report on Migratory Labor, presented to the President by the Interdepartmental Committee to Coordinate Health and Welfare Activities, recommended the extension of social insurance programs to agricultural labor. July 2, 1940 The Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act was amended. One amendment was extended to July 1, 1942, the final date on which action could be taken by certain States to transfer from their accounts in unemployment trust fund to railroad unemployment insurance account amounts provided under Section 13(d) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act. Under this amendment, the Social Security Board was enabled to continue payment of administrative expenses for unemployment compensation in any State whose highest court had declared unconstitutional State legislation authorizing the transfer of funds. July 11, 1940 The Bureau of Employment Security was designated a defense agency. August 13, 1940 The Coal Mining Coverage Act was approved. It provided for more uniform coverage of certain persons employed in coal mining operations with respect to social insurance benefits under the Social Security Act. September 5, 1940 Isidore S. Falk was named the Director of the Bureau of Research and Statistics, replacing Ewan Clague who had served since 1937. September 14, 1940 The President recommended to Congress legislation designed to protect the social insurance rights of workers called into military service. October 8, 1940 The Federal Unemployment Tax Act was amended by the Second Revenue Act of 1940 to permit employers to credit, against that tax for 1936, 1937, 1938 or 1939, contributions paid by them under State unemployment compensation laws at any time within 60 days after date of enactment. October 8, 1940 The Social Security Board established regulations relative to determinations and decisions, hearing and review of matters affecting payments and revision of wage records, certification of payments, and representation of parties. October 10, 1940 The Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act was amended to change the benefit structure, definitions of employment and benefit year, disqualification provisions, and administrative procedures. October 21, 1940 The Appeals Council of the Social Security Board, after reviewing an appealed referee decision relating to a claim for old-age and survivors benefits, handed down its first decision. November 28, 1940 The National Defense Council, with the approval of the President, designated the Federal Security Administrator as coordinator of all health, medical, welfare, nutrition, recreation, and related fields of activity affecting the national defense. The Health and Medical Committee was transferred to the Federal Security Agency. December 8-11, 1940 Arthur J. Altmeyer went to Lima, Peru to develop Pan American cooperation in Social Security. Following the meeting, a temporary Inter-American Committee on Social Security was formed. December 23, 1940 Public Assistance principles and standards for fair hearing procedure were adopted by the Social Security Board to attain uniform interpretation of the Social Security Act's requirement that opportunity for fair hearing to dissatisfied applicants or recipients be provided under approved State plans, and to assist State agencies in clarifying and revising procedures. 1940 During the year, the first United States Social Security payments were made to 100 beneficiaries living abroad. January 6, 1941 The President's State of the Union message recommended that coverage of the two social insurance programs be extended, opportunities for medical care be widened and plans made for a better employment system to assure work for persons needing gainful employment. January 14, 1941 The Social Security Board adopted revised minimum standards for partial unemployment benefits, effective June 1, 1941, for administration by State employment security agencies. February 4, 1941 The Social Security Board approved a statement of policy, relating to the consideration of income and resources in the determination of the need of an applicant for public assistance and to guide State agencies in conforming to the requirements called for by amendments to the Social Security Act. February 7, 1941 The Rehabilitation Coordinating Committee was established within the Federal Security Agency, by order of the Administrator. It was charged with continuing the development of a program of coordination among the various Federal services engaged cooperatively with State governments in the general field of service to the disabled. February 11, 1941 The appointment of The Interdepartmental Advisory Committee was announced by the Administration of the Federal Security Agency to assist and advise him in his capacity as Coordinator of Health, Welfare and Related Defense Activities. Regional directors of the Social Security Board have named as regional defense coordinators to act as chairmen of 12 regional advisory councils, each composed of regional representatives of all Federal agencies concerned. February 12, 1941 The Family Security Committee, under the chairmanship of the Director of the Bureau of Public Assistance of the Social Security Board, was established by the Coordinator of Health, Welfare and Related Defense Activities to act in an advisory capacity to the Coordinator. February 26, 1941 The Bureau of Public Assistance was designated a defense agency. March 17, 1941 The Report of the National Resources Planning Board was submitted to the President. April 11, 1941 The Social Security Board was designated a defense agency. April 25, 1941 The Social Security Board adopted a statement of standards for safeguarding information concerning applicants and recipients of public assistance, for guidance of State agencies. June 1,1941 Revised minimum standards for the administration of partial unemployment benefits was adopted by the Social Security Board and became effective this date. June 20, 1941 A special Senate Committee to Investigate the Old-Age Pension System was authorized to make a full study of old-age assistance and old-age and survivors insurance provisions of the Social Security Act, as amended, and of ways and means for bringing about the early realization of a minimum pension for all aged persons who were not gainfully employed. July 1,1941 The provisions of the Social Security Act Amendments of 1939 became effective, requiring that a State agency which administers the program shall, in determining need, take into consideration any other income and resources of an applicant for assistance, and provide safeguards to restrict the use or disclosure of information concerning applicants and recipients to purposes directly connected with administration of the program. Also effective this date were the provisions requiring that State laws include a provision that Federal funds received as administrative grants be expended solely for the purposes and in the amounts found necessary by the Social Security Board for proper and efficient administration, and that funds lost or expended for purposes other than, or in amounts in excess of, those found necessary by the Board be replaced within a reasonable time. July 2, 1941 The Social Security Board approved an amendment of Section 403 702 (b) of Regulation No. 3 concerning evidence of the age of an applicant for old-age and survivors insurance benefits. Under this amendment, secondary evidence of age was declared admissible by a mere showing that primary evidence was not readily available. July 21, 1941 The operation of Arizona's employment service offices was taken over by the Social Security Board under arrangement between the Board and the Arizona Employment Security Commission. Thus, the State Commission was to pay unemployment compensation benefits through employment service offices operated by the Board. July 29,1941 The Social Security Board approved a draft copy of a reciprocal arrangement with the Dominion of Canada for handling unemployment contributions and benefits and also procedures for the transmittal of the agreement and the official adoption by both Governments. August 7, 1941 The reappointment of George E. Bigge as a member of the Social Security Board was confirmed by the Senate for a term ending August 13, 1947. August 14, 1941 In the Atlantic Charter, Roosevelt and Churchill included among the common principles in national policies of the two countries the desire "to bring about the fullest collaboration between all nations in the economic field with the object of securing, for all, improved labor standards, economic advancement and Social Security." September 3, 1941 The Office of Defense, Health and Welfare Services was established by the President to supersede the Office of Coordinator of Health, Welfare, and Related Defense Activities (November 28, 1940). September 15, 1941 The program for making a substantial decentralization of adjudicative functions of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance became effective. Field offices assumed full responsibility for the reconciliation of wages, the development of claims, and the computation of benefit amounts; their determinations were subject to review in central office. September 20, 1941 The Federal Unemployment Tax Act and the Social Security Act were amended by the Revenue Act of 1941 to permit employers to credit against Federal unemployment tax for the calendar years 1936-1940, contributions, paid by them, under State unemployment compensation laws, before the 60th day after the date of enactment of the Revenue Act of 1941, if such claim was made within six months of that date. September 23, 1984 The Social Security Board approved amendments to Sections 403.601 and 403.811 of Regulations No. 3 providing (1) that a penalty deduction from benefits which has not been made at the time of termination of benefits will not be considered an overpayment and need not require deduction from survivor benefits or restitution from the beneficiary's estate; and (2) that persons employed by.partnerships composed wholly of relatives designated in the family employment exception of the Social Security Act were to be excluded from coverage when the individual's relationship to each partner was as designated in the exception. September 30, 1941 The Social Security Board approved a revision of Section 403.834(c) of Regulations No. 3, to the effect that, when the husband has been ordered by any court of competent jurisdiction to contribute to his wife's support, such order shall be considered as in full force and effect unless it has expired or has been vacated. November 4, 1941 The Social Security Board adopted a policy permitting Federal financial participation in payments based on State plans that include grants enabling a recipient to meet the cost of care in a public hospital, provided that such care is not available to recipients of public assistance without charge, payments are not conditional, and care is not expected to extend beyond 90 days. November 7, 1941 The Social Security Board ruled that wages paid for employment during 1937, with a State chartered member of the Federal Home Loan Bank System or State member banks of Federal Reserve System, be included in determining insured status and the amount of benefits in all pending and future claims for benefits. November 24, 1941 The United States Supreme Court held unconstitutional the California legislation prohibiting any individual from assisting nonresident indigent persons to come into the State. December 1, 1941 Oscar C. Pogge was named the Acting Director of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance. He succeeded John J. Corson, who was appointed to the newly-created position of Director of the United States Employment Service. December 4, 1941 The Committee on Long Range Work and Relief Policies of the National Resources Planning Board transmitted to the President a comprehensive report "Security, Work and Relief Policies." This report advocated the addition of an insurance system that would provide disability and sickness benefits. December 8, 1941 The work week was extended to 48 hours, after the attack on Pearl Harbor. December 19, 1941 The national operation of the United States Employment service, effective January 1, 1942, was requested by the President. Telegrams were sent to the governor of each State and Territory declaring that the war program necessitated the establishment of a single centrally-directed organization to ensure effective utilization of all labor resources. December 31, 1941 The Social Security Board approved amendments to Section 403.702(b), (a), and (d) of Regulations No. 3 concerning certification of records by Board employees. Under this amendment, designated field office employees of the Board were authorized,in specified instances, to certify to the contents of records in situations in which such certification might be made by the custodian of such records. December 31, 1941 The Social Security Board certified to the Secretary of the Treasury all 51 jurisdictions as having approved unemployment compensation laws permitting employers to credit against 90 percent of the Federal unemployment tax for taxable year 1941 amounts paid as contributions under State laws. 1941 The Social Security Board first recommended the addition of disability benefits in its "Annual Report to Congress for 1941." January 1, 1942 The States turned over to the Social Security Board the operation of the State-administered employment offices to effect the fullest utilization of the nation's labor supply. January 5, 1942 The constitutionality of coverage under Pennsylvania's unemployment compensation law of employers engaged in interstate commerce was upheld by the United States Supreme Court, since such coverage did not trespass on Federal jurisdiction but was authorized by Federal law. January 12, 1942 Executive Order No. 9017 established the War Labor Board to minimize strikes and lockouts. January 13, 1942 The Social Security Board agreed to share administrative expenses of State public assistance agencies incurred in services of an exploratory and organizational nature for war or defense purposes, even though such activity may not have been concerned directly with the assistance program on which the employee normally worked. February 6, 1942 The Social Security Board approved an amendment of Section 403.831 of Regulations No. 3 to permit a claimant to qualify for widow's insurance benefits, if she is the mother of an insured wage earner's child or was married to a wage earner a year before his death, without requiring also that she meet the added requirements of "wife" as defined elsewhere in the law. February 6, 1942 President Roosevelt issued an order to the Federal Security Agency to create the Civilian War Benefits and Civilian War Assistance programs and for aid to enemy aliens (principally, to remove them to internment sites). The President's order allocated $5,000,000 from the President's Emergency Fund for these purposes. The Social Security Board was delegated this responsibility by the FSA. February 9, 1942 The Social Security Board was given certain responsibilities in the program for aid to enemy aliens removed from the West Coast. February 10, 1942 The Social Security Board authorized State public assistance agencies to release to selective service boards information relevant to dependency obtained from the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance. February 26, 1942 The Social Security Board was authorized to administer monthly benefits, assistance, and services to civilians affected by enemy action; hospitalization and medical care were made the responsibility of the Public Health Service. March 3, 1942 The Social Security Board delegated to the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance responsibility for administering a temporary system to provide monthly benefit payments to dependents residing in continental United States or civilians affected by enemy action occurring outside the continental United States. March 11, 1942 The Federal Security Administrator authorized the Social Security Board to utilize funds for assistance payments to needy civilians evacuated from Hawaii or Alaska. March 17, 1942 The Social Security Board ruled: (1) that original determination of benefit awards, when based upon an obvious mistake of fact or law, shall be reopened retroactively and payments already made recovered or adjusted unless recovery or adjustment is waived under Section 204(b); and (2) that original determination of benefit awards, when not based upon obvious mistake of fact or law and not wholly arbitrary or unreasonable but no longer representing the position of the Board, shall in any event be reopened prospectively only and shall not be reopened at all if the beneficiary, who relied upon original determination, would be irreparably damaged by such reopening. March 20, 1942 The Social Security Board certified the first civilian war benefits-chiefly for dependents of workers on Guam and Wake Island. April 6, 1942 The United States Supreme Court upheld the validity of the "common control" provision of Mississippi's unemployment compensation law by dismissing the appeal of a Mississippi employer from a decision by the Mississippi Supreme Court which had held an employer liable for contributions under the State unemployment compensation law because he had exercised control of two businesses with a total of ten employees. April 12, 1942 An agreement became effective between the United States and Canada for coordinating and integrating the unemployment insurance of the two countries to avoid duplicating contributions and benefits. April 18, 1942 The War Manpower Commission was established by Executive Order with the Federal Security Administrator as Chairman. April 28, 1942 The Social Security Board approved the release of information for war related purposes by State public assistance agencies under proper safeguards and in consideration of their own laws and standards. April 29, 1942 Rhode Island became the first State to enact a sickness compensation law, providing cash sickness benefits for workers covered by the State Unemployment Compensation law. May 5, 1942 Arthur J. Altmeyer, Chairman of the Social Security Board, was appointed Executive Director of the War Manpower Commission. He continued his duties on the Social Security Board. May 16, 1942 The administration of Federal Credit Unions was transferred by Executive Order of the President from the Farm Credit Administration to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. May 22, 1942 The Social Security Board amended Section 403.202 or Regulations No. 3; in determining old age and survivors insurance benefit rights, each quarter for which a person was paid wages of not less than $50 in covered employment would be counted for purposes of determining "currently insured" status, notwithstanding the $3,000 limitation. June 1, 1942 The central office of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance moved from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, Maryland; decentralization of claims adjudication review and benefit payment operations was inaugurated with the opening of the first area office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A Bureau Personnel Office was established as an incident to the war time decentralization of the Bureau to Baltimore. June 5, 1942 In cases involving a question of coverage under the Railroad Retirement Act or the old-age and survivors insurance program, the Social Security Board decided to pay monthly old-age and survivors insurance benefits unless the Railroad Retirement Board was making a current payment on the basis of the same wage record. Lump-sum payments would be made only if the Railroad Retirement Board was not making such a payment. June 23,1942 The Servicemen's Dependents Allowance Act of 1942 was approved. It provided family allowances for dependents of enlisted men of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and the Coast Guard. June 26, 1942  The Social Security Board agreed to a Treasury Department request to shift the payment date for Social Security checks from the first of the month to the fifth. This was a war-mobilization action designed to reduce government demands on the Federal Reserve system at a time when it was trying to cope with many new demands for war-related payments. July 1, 1942 The Social Security Board authorized continuing assistance, when necessary, on a month-to-month basis, for persons receiving temporary aid under temporary civilian assistance and enemy-alien allocations. July 1, 1942 The Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance opened an area office in New York City. July 3,1942 The Social Security Board approved a formula which would charge to programs other than those under Titles I, IV and X of the Social Security Act that portion of merit system costs incurred in connection with holding examinations, establishing and maintaining eligible registers and certifying persons from such registers which was attributable to employees working full time on such programs. July 14, 1942 The Social Security Board approved an interpretation of residence requirements under public assistance programs indicating that the Social Security Act referred to residence only, and not to settlement or domicile, insofar as such terms are more restrictive than residence. The Board ruled that a State may not discontinue assistance because a recipient was temporarily absent from a State or because a recipient moved from one locality to another within a State. July 24, 1942 The first field office of the War Manpower Commission opened in Baltimore, a critical labor supply area. August 1, 1942 The Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance opened an area office in Chicago, Illinois. August 1, 1942 Oscar C. Pogge was named the Director of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance. August 28, 1942 Emergency grants to States was authorized for programs for day care for children of working mothers under plans approved by the Children's Bureau and the Office of Education, administered by the Works Projects Administration. September 1, 1942 The Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance opened area offices in New Orleans, Louisiana, and San Francisco, California. The Social Security Board directed the transfer of the Regional Office for Region VII from Birmingham, Alabama, to Atlanta, Georgia, effective October 1, 1942; it also authorized the transfer of the State of Arizona from Region XI to Region XII. September 4, 1942 A Women's Policy Committee was created to assist the War Manpower Commission. September 10, 1942 The Inter-American Conference on Social Security opened in Santiago, Chile, under auspices of the Chilean government, with the Chairman of the Social Security Board, Arthur J. Altmeyer, as Chairman of the United States delegation. A permanent Inter-American Committee on Social Security was created. September 17, 1942 The Chairman of the War Manpower Commission announced the appointment of three new regional directors. The former regional director of the Social Security Board's Region II, was appointed regional director for the Commission for the analogous region, New York State. The other two directors were appointed for Region I--New England, and Region X--Texas, New Mexico and Louisiana. September 17, 1942 The United States Employment Service, National Youth Administration, apprenticeship training service, and training-within-industry service were transferred to the War Manpower Commission, by Executive Order, thus consolidating all authority over employment and employment training within the Commission. September 1942 The headquarters of Region VII were moved from Birmingham to Atlanta to coincide with the War Manpower Commission headquarters. Also, Arizona was transferred from Region XI to Region XII. October 3, 1942 Executive Order No. 9250 assigned administration of the wage stabilization program to the War Labor Board. October 5, 1942 President Roosevelt expands the Civilian War Benefits programs to include civil defense and related workers residing in the United States. October 9, 1942 The President asked Congress to establish within the Federal Security Agency a single rehabilitation service as central authority to coordinate and expand State and Federal services for rehabilitation of civilians and military personnel. October 15, 1942 Arkansas inaugurated a plan for services to children of working mothers. (By December 31, similar programs were in operation in seven other States. October 21, 1942 The Revenue Act of 1942 postponed the increase in the rate of contributions scheduled for 1943 under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act-(the rate was frozen at one percent through 1943.) November 5, 1942 In accord with the President's request, the Federal Security Administrator authorized the Social Security Board (1) to pay disability benefits to civilians who had been injured in the performance of certain civilian defense activities or who had sustained injuries as a result of enemy action occurring after December 6, 1941, (survivor benefits were to be paid to survivors of such defense workers and other civilians who died from such injuries), and (2) to expand the temporary civilian war assistance program. November 25, 1942 The Social Security Board approved the following recommendations for treating the income of employed recipients: That the States be encouraged (1) to determine, upon a reasonable basis, the minimum amount which any recipient of public assistance who is an actual or potential worker may be considered to need to cover expenses incident to employment; (2) to include the amount so determined in requirements of all employed or potential workers who are recipients of public assistance; and (3) to make additional provision for the needs incident to employment that may exceed the minimum. December 1, 1942 The United States Employment Service was transferred to the War Manpower Commission December 1, 1942 Sir William Beveridge's report, "Social Insurance and Allied Services," was submitted to Parliament on December 1, 1942. It called for: (1) a scheme of all-in social insurance for cash benefits; (2) a general scheme of children's allowances both where the responsible parent was earning an income and where he or she was not earning an income; and (3) an all-in scheme of medical treatment of every kind for everybody. December 2, 1942 Public Law No. 784 enacted which codified and amended the Civilian War Benefits programs. December 4, 1942 President Roosevelt ordered the liquidation of the W.P.A., and termination of project operations by February 1, 1943, or as soon thereafter as feasible. December 7, 1942 Arthur J. Altmeyer resigned as Executive Director of the War Manpower Commission and assumed the position of a member representing the Federal Security Agency. December 18, 1942 The Social Security Board amended Section 403.711(a) and (b) of Regulations No. 3 to authorize referees of the Appeals Council to extend the time within which a request for a hearing could be filed; and to authorize referees to revise their own decisions when it clearly appeared that there was an error of fact or law in a decision or that a decision was procured by fraud or misrepresentation. January 7, 1943 A post-war world which would furnish "assurance against the evils of all major economic hazards - assurance that will extend from the cradle to the grave" was envisioned by President Roosevelt in his message on the State of the Union, as one of two broad aims beyond the winning of the war. March 10, 1943 A proposal for Social Security coverage for the armed forces and for a comprehensive post-war system of Social Security was sent to Congress by President Roosevelt.