In Washington, DC, on Monday, January 6, 1936, the U.S. Supreme Court declared the Agricultural Adjustment Act unconstitutional. The intent of the AAA (created in 1933) was to restore the purchasing power of American farmers, eroded by falling prices, by paying them to cut production. The cost of this program was raised by taxes on companies that bought farm products to make food and clothing. The court ruled that this practice infringed on states’ rights, violating the Tenth Amendment. Below: Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the Act in 1933.
