Which of the following describes the purpose of the Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933?

• A. Created the TVA to oversee dam construction, flood control, navigation improvement, and cheap electric power in the Tennessee Valley.
• B. Established the Civilian Conservation Corps to provide employment in reforestation.
• C. Created the Securities and Exchange Commission to regulate the stock market.
• D. Authorized the construction of the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River.

Answer: (A)

The Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933 was about using the federal government to modernize a rural region through coordinated river system management. It created a federal agency to plan and carry out a set of projects in the Tennessee Valley: building dams to control floods and generate affordable electricity, improving navigation on the Tennessee River, and promoting economic development and land restoration in the area. This combination of flood control, cheap power, and better river transportation was intended to lift communities out of poverty and help modernize the region during the Great Depression. That is why describing the act as creating the TVA to oversee dam construction, flood control, navigation improvement, and cheap electric power in the Tennessee Valley best captures its purpose.

The other options point to different New Deal initiatives or separate projects: assigning reforestation to a civilian corps, regulating the stock market with a securities commission, or authorizing a major dam on the Colorado River. These are not the TVA’s goals, which centers specifically on the Tennessee Valley and the integrated set of improvements just described.