answersLogoWhite

0

if you mean: "....in the USA", the oldest welfare legislation was the 1862 legislation providing pensions for Union soldiers disabled in the war. The first general welfare legislation in the USA came in 1935 with the Social Security Act. As to 'why': the reason was the Great Depression with its resulting massive unimployment and often desperate hunger and poverty. Originally, payments had the form of incidental, lump-sum payments. Only in 1940 welfare payments became regular monthly payments.

User Avatar

Wiki User

8y ago

What else can I help you with?