Office of Economic Opportunity

Part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) was created by the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (EOA). A controversial umbrella program that administered many antipoverty programs, including education programs, the OEO was abolished in 1974 during the administration of President Gerald Ford; however, many of its programs continue to serve persons with low incomes.

The EOA created and funded community action agencies (CAAs), which administered OEO programs at the local level. CAAs were required to include residents with low incomes in planning and administration of OEO programs. OEO-administered education-related programs included the Job Corps, Head Start, Adult Basic Education, and VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America). Other OEO programs included funding for senior centers, congregate meal sites, family planning, and civil legal aid for persons with low incomes.

The first director of the OEO was Sargent Shriver, who served from 1964 to 1969. The OEO's antipoverty work earned it many enemies, including California Governor Ronald Reagan, who objected to OEO-funded advocacy on behalf of migrant farm workers. The OEO also earned enemies among urban politicians who resented increased federal influence in traditionally [Page 711]local antipoverty programs. The Vietnam War also diverted money and attention from the OEO's work.

During the administration of President Richard Nixon, who promised during the 1968 campaign to limit the OEO's authority, several OEO programs were transferred to other agencies, such as the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Later in his administration, President Nixon sought to eliminate funding for CAAs and other OEO programs, resulting in litigation forcing the administration to spend money Congress had appropriated.

The Community Services Administration (CSA) replaced the OEO in 1974. In 1981, during the first year of President Reagan's administration, the EOA was repealed, replaced by a system of block grants, and the CSA was dissolved. The OEO's legacy continues, however. CAAs continue to provide assistance and advocacy to persons with low incomes, and many OEO programs, such as Head Start, the Job Corps, and legal aid, are still in existence. Furthermore, many prominent political leaders served in the OEO. Donald Rumsfeld, defense secretary under President George W. Bush, was the first director of the OEO under President Nixon. Other OEO alumni include Vice President Dick Cheney, Bill Bradley, former U.S. senator from New Jersey, Frank Carlucci, defense secretary under President Reagan, Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey, and U.S. representative Jim Leach of Iowa.