Which U.S. law created the country’s first permanent public-housing program in 1937?

The United States Housing Act of 1937 created the country’s first permanent public-housing program.

Signed during the New Deal, the law established the United States Housing Authority and provided federal loans and subsidies to local public-housing agencies. Its initial emphasis was replacing unsafe housing and constructing dwellings for low-income households.

The act built on earlier emergency programs but created a continuing federal framework for public housing. Local authorities generally owned and operated the developments, while federal policy shaped funding and eligibility.

It is often confused with the National Housing Act of 1934, which expanded mortgage insurance and created the Federal Housing Administration. A later Housing Act of 1949 set a broader national goal of decent housing and expanded urban-redevelopment policy, but it was not the original permanent public-housing law.