It was the first direct-relief procedure under the New Deal and was headed by Harry L. Hopkin.
The three main goals of FERA were: (1) to be effective, (2) provide work for employable people on the relief rolls, and (3) to have a diverse variety of relief programs.
FERA provided grants from the federal government to state governments for a variety of projects in fields such as agriculture, construction, the arts, and education. Many people who were receiving relief aid were already trained, skilled workers. The main hope behind FERA, was that by providing many different types of jobs and salaries that were similar to workers’ previous jobs the whole