The production credit system of 1933

With the establishment of a permanent system of production credits in 1933, the American farmer was provided with a publicly sponsored institution to meet each of his credit needs. Although the legislation establishing the earlier agencies was controversial and attracted general notice, that setting up the production credit system received comparatively little attention. This paper describes briefly the structure of the system and outlines the scale of loaning operations to date. At the end of 1934 it seems probable that the system had approximately one-tenth as many loans outstanding for agricultural purposes as did the commercial banks. The competitive position of the system, particularly in relation to country banks, is discussed in some detail. Attention is also given to the perplexing problem which the system faces in its efforts to maintain a uniform loan rate for all parts of the country.