In 1934, Congress enacted the FrazierLemke Farm Bankruptcy Act to enable the nation's debt-ridden farmers to scale down their mortgages. The act delayed foreclosure of a bankrupt farmers' property for five years, during which the bankrupt made rental payments. The farmer could then buy back the property at its currently appraised value over six years at 1 percent interest, or remain in possession as a paying tenant. Interestingly, according to Marian McKenna in Franklin Roosevelt and the Great Constitutional War (2002), " The federal government was empowered to buy up farm mortgages and issue non-interest-bearing treasury notes in exchange." N on-interest-bearing treasury notes are what President Lincoln issued during the Civil War, when they were called "Greenbacks."
The 1934 Act was subsequently challenged by secured creditors as violating the Fifth Amendment's due process guarantee of just compensation, a fundamental right of mortgage holders. (Note that this would probably not be a valid challenge today, since there don't seem to be legitimate mortgage holders in these securitization cases. There are just investors with unsecured claims for relief in equity for money damages.) The Supreme Court voided the 1934 Act, and Congress responded with the "Farm Mortgage Moratorium Act" in 1935. The terms were modified, limiting the moratorium to a three-year period, and the revision gave secured creditors the opportunity to force a public sale, with the proviso that the farmer could redeem the property by paying the sale amount. The act was renewed four times until 1949, when it expired. During the 15 years the act was in place, farm prices stabilized and the economy took off, retooling it for its role as a global industrial power during the remainder of the century.
We've come full circle again. We didn't get it right in 2008, but with the newly empowered Financial Stability Oversight Council, we already have the ready-made vehicle to avoid another taxpayer bailout, and to put too-big-to-fail behind us as well.
First posted on Yes! Magazine.Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
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