Economic Stabilization Agency
Encyclopedia
The Economic Stabilization Agency (ESA) was an agency
of the United States Government that existed from 1950 to 1953.
The creation of the ESA was authorized by the Defense Production Act
, which was signed into law by President of the United States
Harry S. Truman
on September 8, 1950. The Defense Production Act was passed in response to the start of the Korean War
and authorized the President to control the civilian economy so that scarce and/or critical materials necessary to the national defense effort are available for defense needs.
On September 9, 1950, President Truman signed the Executive Order 10161, thus creating the ESA. The ESA was responsible for imposing price ceilings and wage controls on the United States economy. In this capacity, the ESA was responsible for supervising the Office of Price Stabilization, the Wage Stabilization Board
, the Salary Stabilization Board, the Office of Rent Stabilization, the Railroad and Airline Wage Board, and the National Enforcement Commission.
The price control provisions of the Defense Production Act expired in 1953, so, on February 6, 1953, President Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10434 abolishing the ESA effective April 30, 1953. Executive Order 10480, signed August 14, 1953, ordered the liquidation of the ESA, and this was complete by October 31, 1953.
Government agency
A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...
of the United States Government that existed from 1950 to 1953.
The creation of the ESA was authorized by the Defense Production Act
Defense Production Act
The Defense Production Act is a United States law enacted on September 8, 1950, in response to the start of the Korean War. It was part of a broad civil defense and war mobilization effort in the context of the Cold War. Its implementing regulations, the Defense Priorities and Allocation System ,...
, which was signed into law by President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
on September 8, 1950. The Defense Production Act was passed in response to the start of the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
and authorized the President to control the civilian economy so that scarce and/or critical materials necessary to the national defense effort are available for defense needs.
On September 9, 1950, President Truman signed the Executive Order 10161, thus creating the ESA. The ESA was responsible for imposing price ceilings and wage controls on the United States economy. In this capacity, the ESA was responsible for supervising the Office of Price Stabilization, the Wage Stabilization Board
Wage Stabilization Board
The Wage Stabilization Board was set up by President Harry Truman within the United States Department of Labor, in December 1945, to take over the work of the National War Labor Board...
, the Salary Stabilization Board, the Office of Rent Stabilization, the Railroad and Airline Wage Board, and the National Enforcement Commission.
The price control provisions of the Defense Production Act expired in 1953, so, on February 6, 1953, President Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10434 abolishing the ESA effective April 30, 1953. Executive Order 10480, signed August 14, 1953, ordered the liquidation of the ESA, and this was complete by October 31, 1953.
Directors of the ESA
- Alan ValentineAlan ValentineAlan Chester Valentine competed on the gold-medal winning American rugby union team in the 1924 Summer Olympics.-Biography:...
, 1950–51 - Eric JohnstonEric JohnstonEric Allen Johnston was a business owner, president of the United States Chamber of Commerce, a Republican Party activist, president of the Motion Picture Association of America , and a U.S. government special projects administrator and envoy for both Democratic and Republican administrations...
, 1951 - Roger PutnamRoger PutnamRoger Lowell Putnam was an American politician and businessman. A member of the prominent Lowell family of Boston, he served as Mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts, from 1937 until 1943, and as director of the Economic Stabilization Administration from 1951 until 1952...
, 1951–52