great society programs

24th Amendment

1964 - Outlawed poll tax in federal elections (expanded voting to minority groups)

Civil Rights Act

1964 - Banned discrimination in employment and public accommodations on the basis of race, religion, sex, or national origin

Voting Rights Act

1965 - Outlawed literacy tests for voting, provided federal supervision of registration in historically low-registration areas

Economic Opportunity Act

1964 - Created Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) to administer War on Poverty programs such as Head Start, Job Corps, and Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA)

Medical Care Act

1965 - Provided medical care for the poor (Medicaid) and the elderly (Medicare)

Minimum Wage Act

1966 - Raised hourly minimum wage from $1.25 to $1.40 and expanded coverage to new groups

Elementary and Secondary Education Act

1965 - Granted federal aid for education of poor children

National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities

1965 - Provided federal funding and support for artists and scholars

Higher Education Act

1965 - Provided federal scholarships for postsecondary education

Urban Mass Transportation Act

1964 - Provided federal aid to urban mass transit

Omnibus Housing Act

1964 - Provided federal funds for public housing and rent subsidies for low-income families

Housing and Urban Development Act

1965 - Created Department of Housing and Urban Development

Metropolitan Area Redevelopment and Demonstration Cities Acts

1966 - Designated 150 “model cities” for combined programs of public housing, social services, and job training

Wilderness Preservation Act

1964 - Designated 9.1 million acres of federal lands as “wilderness areas”, barring future roads, buildings, or commercial use

Air and Water Quality Acts

1965 - Set tougher air quality standards, required states to enforce water quality standards for interstate waters

Tax Reduction Act

1964 - Reduced personal and corporate income tax rates

Immigration Act

1965 - Abandoned national quotas of 1924 law, allowing for further non-European immigration

Appalachian Regional and Development Act

1965 - Provided federal funding for roads, health clinics, and other public works projects in economically depressed regions

Equal Pay Act

1963 - Established the principle of equal pay for equal work, had been pushed for by “labor feminists”