Progressive Legislation Timeline

  • Meat Inspection Act

    Meat Inspection Act
    The Meat Inspection Act stopped the sale of adulterated or misbranded livestock. This act also made sure that meat was slaughtered in sanitary conditions. This act made sure that meat was safer for human consumption.
  • Pure Food and Drug Act

    Pure Food and Drug Act
    This act ensured the sanitary preparation of food. This act started requiring accurate ingredient labeling and stopped the sale of adulterated and misbranded food and drugs in interstate commerce.
  • Antiquities Act

    Antiquities Act
    This act served as the first law to give general legal protection of cultural and natural resources of historic or scientific interest on federal land. This act was created due to the concern over the loss of information galvanized a scientific and political coalition to pass a federal law to preserve America’s archeological places and the information they contained on public lands.
  • Hepburn Act

    Hepburn Act
    Hepburn Bill was a bill that fortified the powers of the Interstate Commerce Commission and strengthened federal regulation of railroads. This bill was passed after railroads kept passed very unpopular rates that were constantly increasing.
  • Mann-Elkins Act

    Mann-Elkins Act
    The Mann-Elkins Act forced railroads to prove that their rates were reasonable, helping to get rid of the extremely high rates. ICC gained a lot of control over the railroads and a lot of the rail competition.
  • Workers Compensation Act

    Workers Compensation Act
    This act provided workers' compensation coverage for injuries they may have suffered related to employment and any occupational diseases. This act protected workers' rights.
  • 16th Amendment

    16th Amendment
    This Amendment was passed during the progressive era. It gave Congress the authority to issue an income tax, but without having to determine it based on population.
  • 17th Amendment

    17th Amendment
    This Amendment made it so that the Senate of the US is to be made up of two senators elected by the people. These senators would be in office for six years and each senator is to have one vote.
  • Federal Reserve Act

    Federal Reserve Act
    This law created the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the US. This protected the US's economy because it helped create a regulated government.
  • Federal Trade Commission Act

    Federal Trade Commission Act
    This law established the Federal Trade Commission. This outlaws unfair methods of compensation and unfair acts and practices that can affect commerce.
  • Clayton Antitrust Act

    Clayton Antitrust Act
    This act defined unethical business practices like price fixing and monopolies. This act upheld the rights of labor and this act still regulates US businesses, even today.
  • Keating-Owen Act

    Keating-Owen Act
    This act was put in place to protect children. This act made it so that children's working hours were limited and forbade interstate sale of goods produced from child labor.
  • Adamson Act

    Adamson Act
    This law was passed to make sure workers' had an eight hour workday. This law was passed to protect workers' rights.
  • Volstead Act

    Volstead Act
    The Volstead Act was put in place to enforce the eighteenth amendment. This prohibited the manufacture and sale of alcohol.
  • 18th Amendment

    18th Amendment
    This Amendment stopped the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol. However, this amendment did not prohibit the consumption, private possession, or production for one's own consumption.
  • 19th Amendment

    19th Amendment
    This Amendment gave women the right to vote and made it illegal to deny a citizen the right to vote based on sex. It took 42 years to be certified.