https://crsreports.congress.gov
November 13, 2019
Presidential Directives: An Introduction
Presidential directives, such as proclamations and executive
orders, are a tool used by Presidents to announce official
policy and make declarations in their roles as leader of the
executive branch, commander in chief of the Armed Forces,
and head of state. Presidents have used directives
throughout American history for a wide variety of purposes,
but they have taken on a more central policy role in recent
Administrations.
Background
In 1789, during the first months of government under the
new Constitution, President Washington issued both the
first presidential proclamation, declaring a national day of
Thanksgiving in November 1789, and the first precursor of
the modern executive order. In that directive, Washington
ordered executive branch officers who had also served
under the Articles of Confederation to report to the new
President on the ongoing affairs of the government and to
explain their duties.
Since the Administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt,
presidential directives have expanded in both form and
function. Increasing use of executive orders and the
development of national security directives have increased
both the formality of the official presidential decision
process and the breadth of covered actions and policy areas.
The development process defined in Executive Order 11030
(originally issued June 19, 1962) sets out more detailed
guidelines for the preparation and internal review of
executive orders and proclamations.
The Constitution does not explicitly recognize a
presidential power to issue directives. However, there has
been general acceptance since the Washington
Administration that this authority is necessary for the
President to manage the executive branch and that some
authority to issue directives is inherent in the executive’s
Article II powers. Congress may also grant the President
discretion to make certain decisions and determinations that
have legal effect but may be affected by subsequent
legislative action.
Finding Presidential Directives
Many presidential directives are published in the Federal
Register under the general heading “Executive Office of the
President” and compiled in Title 3 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR). Under 44 U.S.C. §1505, proclamations,
executive orders, and other documents of “general
applicability and legal effect” must be published in the
Federal Register.
While the Federal Register is the source of record and is
updated daily, there may be a lag between the public
announcement of a directive by an Administration and its
official publication.
The Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents
(https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/cpd) and
https://www.whitehouse.gov/ also publish presidential
directives (and other presidential documents including
signing statements, messages, and press releases) but may
not be as current or comprehensive as the Federal Register.
Presidential directives with ongoing effect remain in force
across presidential transitions, but generally may be
amended, repealed, or replaced by the President. For
instance, at the start of an Administration, the new
President frequently revokes or amends some of the
executive orders issued by previous Presidents. When
researching an executive order, therefore, it is important to
determine its current status. Both the National Archives and
Records Administration (partial coverage from the Franklin
Roosevelt to Barack Obama Administrations at
https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/
disposition) and the Federal Register (beginning in 1994 at
https://www.federalregister.gov/presidential-documents/
executive-orders) maintain online disposition tables for
executive orders. These tables allow users to check the
status of individual orders, including whether they have
been revoked, amended, or superseded by later executive
orders.
Classes of Directives
Presidents may avail themselves of a few different types of
directives. Although it is useful to know the different types
of presidential directives, several of the classifications are
not as clear or as legally significant as they might appear to
be, and different Administrations may use different naming
conventions in some cases.
Proclamations
There are two distinct classes of presidential directives that
are referred to as proclamations. The first are ceremonial
announcements, such as Washington’s Thanksgiving
proclamation, that are issued in observance of significant
events. Second, there are substantive proclamations that are
typically legal pronouncements on international trade,
national emergencies, or federal land management.
Proclamations issued pursuant to the Antiquities Act of
1906 (P.L. 59-209), which allows the President to create
national monuments on public lands, are a well-known
example of substantive proclamations.
Executive Orders
Executive orders are arguably the best-known type of
presidential directives and, among all types of presidential
directives, may have the most significant impact on policy.
