Veterans Land Board Scandal
- Veterans Land Board Scandal
The Veterans’ Land Board Scandal was a political scandal in Texas in the mid-1950s.
The Veterans Land Act had been enacted in November 1946. The proposal called for issuing $25 million in bonds, the proceeds of which would be used by the state government to purchase land and resell it to veterans of World War II at 3 % interest on 40 year loans. In early 1951 another $75 million was appropriated by the state for this purpose. The only stipulations on the purchase was that the loan could not be for more than $7,500 and the tracts of land could not be less than 20 acres (80,000 m²). A 5 % downpayment was required, and the land could not be resold for three years. The law allowed for "block sales," whereby veterans could join together to buy the land. This was allowed because it would be difficult to buy 20 acres (80,000 m²) with only $7,500.
The scandal was unearthed in November 1954 when reporter Roland Towery learned that many of the veterans who purchased land in block sales were not even aware that they had purchased land. In fact, many were led to believe that they were getting free land as part of a veteran entitlement program or else were receiving some type of veterans' compensation from the state. When Towery asked General Land Office commissioner Bascom Giles about these irregularities, Giles denied involvement, attributing the irregularities to local land speculators. Struck by the fact that Giles had defended himself before even being accused of anything, Towrey ran with the story, accelerating an investigation begun by the state attorney general the previous year.
Fraud was soon discovered in nine south Texas counties, and numerous members of the General Land Office were charged with fraud and conspiracy to defraud veterans. Giles was imprisoned for his role in the scandal, and many others paid heavy fines for their crimes. Governor Allan Shivers, as a member of the Veterans Land Board, was badly tainted by the scandal. Ralph Yarborough and his allies in the liberal wing of the Texas Democratic Party pointed to the scandal as an example of the kind of corruption that the conservative Shivercrats were willing to overlook.
ee also
* Political scandals of the United States
References
*
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Land use in Oregon — Map of federal land ownership in Oregon Bureau of Indian Affairs … Wikipedia
Political scandals of the United States — This article provides a list of major political scandals of the United States.cope and organization of political scandalsCategorizing and listing scandalsDivision of this article s list of American political scandals falls into four categories… … Wikipedia
Allan Shivers — Infobox Governor name = Robert Allan Shivers order = 37th office = Governor of Texas term start = 1949 term end = 1957 lieutenant = Ben Ramsey (1951 1957) predecessor = Beauford H. Jester successor = Price Daniel birth date = October 5, 1907… … Wikipedia
Shivercrats — The Shivercrats were a conservative faction of the Democratic Party in Texas in the 1950s. The faction was named for Texas’ conservative governor Allan Shivers, who was criticized by liberals within the party particularly Ralph Yarborough for his … Wikipedia
Calendar of 1995 — ▪ 1996 January January 1 Cardoso assumes office Having won some 54% of the ballots cast in the October 1994 election, Fernando Cardoso took the oath of office as president of Brazil. As chief executive of South America s largest… … Universalium
Georgia (U.S. state) Constitution — Infobox document document name = Georgia State Constitution image width = image caption = date created = September 25, 1981 date ratified = November 2, 1982 location of document = Georgia Archives writer = Select Committee on Constitutional… … Wikipedia
United States — a republic in the N Western Hemisphere comprising 48 conterminous states, the District of Columbia, and Alaska in North America, and Hawaii in the N Pacific. 267,954,767; conterminous United States, 3,022,387 sq. mi. (7,827,982 sq. km); with… … Universalium
performing arts — arts or skills that require public performance, as acting, singing, or dancing. [1945 50] * * * ▪ 2009 Introduction Music Classical. The last vestiges of the Cold War seemed to thaw for a moment on Feb. 26, 2008, when the unfamiliar strains … Universalium
cañada — /keuhn yah deuh, yad euh/, n. Chiefly Western U.S. 1. a dry riverbed. 2. a small, deep canyon. [1840 50; < Sp, equiv. to cañ(a) CANE + ada n. suffix] * * * Canada Introduction Canada Background: A land of vast distances and rich natural resources … Universalium
Canada — /kan euh deuh/, n. a nation in N North America: a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 29,123,194; 3,690,410 sq. mi. (9,558,160 sq. km). Cap.: Ottawa. * * * Canada Introduction Canada Background: A land of vast distances and rich natural… … Universalium
