Rural Electrification Administration

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The Rural Electrification Administration was a New Deal-era U.S. government agency that financed and promoted the extension of electric power to rural and farm areas across the country.

Aliases (3)
  • Rural Electrification Act of 1936 ×1
  • Rural Electrification Administration loan program ×1
  • Rural Electrification Administration—Establishment ×1

Statements (49)
Predicate Object
instanceOf New Deal agency
United States federal agency
appliesToJurisdiction United States
country United States
dissolved 1994
fieldOfWork infrastructure development
public utilities
financingMethod federal loans
long-term low-interest credit
foundedBy Franklin D. Roosevelt
hasActivity construction of transmission and distribution lines
financing electric distribution systems
promoting rural electric cooperatives
providing low-interest loans
technical assistance for rural electrification
hasEffect expansion of rural electric cooperatives
increased percentage of electrified farms in the United States
modernization of rural agriculture
reduction of urban-rural infrastructure gap
hasPurpose extension of electric power to farms
extension of electric power to rural areas
improvement of rural living standards
rural electrification
support of agricultural productivity
headquartersLocation Washington, D.C.
historicalPeriod Great Depression
New Deal era
inception 1935
May 11, 1935
legalBasis Executive Order 7037
Rural Electrification Act of 1936
locatedInTheAdministrativeTerritorialEntity District of Columbia
mainBeneficiary farmers
rural communities
rural households
namedAfter rural electrification
notableAchievement electrification of most U.S. farms by the mid-20th century
parentOrganization United States Department of Agriculture
partOf New Deal
United States Department of Agriculture
replacedBy Rural Utilities Service
sector electric power
rural development
significantProject development of rural electric cooperatives in the United States
nationwide expansion of rural power distribution networks
usedFor construction of rural electric lines
construction of rural substations
electrification of farms
electrification of small rural towns


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