Advanced search Help
Searching for terms: EXACT: "Relyea, Harold" in: author
Clear all search criteria
Only 2/3! You are seeing results from the Public Collection, not the complete Full Collection. Sign in to search everything (see eligibility).
-
National Emergency Powers [Updated November 19, 2021]
From the Summary: "The President of the United States has available certain powers that may be exercised in the event that the nation is threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances (other than natural disasters, war, or near-war situations). Such powers may be stated explicitly or implied by the Constitution, assumed by the Chief Executive to be permissible constitutionally, or inferred from or specified by statute. Through legislation, Congress has made a great many delegations of authority in this regard over the past 230 years. There are, however, limits and restraints upon the President in his exercise of emergency powers. With the exception of the habeas corpus clause, the Constitution makes no allowance for the suspension of any of its provisions during a national emergency. Disputes over the constitutionality or legality of the exercise of emergency powers are judicially reviewable. Both the judiciary and Congress, as co-equal branches, can restrain the executive regarding emergency powers. So can public opinion. Since 1976, the President has been subject to certain procedural formalities in utilizing some statutorily delegated emergency authority. The National Emergencies Act [...] eliminated or modified some statutory grants of emergency authority, required the President to formally declare the existence of a national emergency and to specify what statutory authority activated by the declaration would be used, and provided Congress a means to countermand the President's declaration and the activated authority being sought. The development of this regulatory statute and subsequent declarations of national emergency are reviewed in this report."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Halchin, L. Elaine; Relyea, Harold
2021-11-19
-
Presidential Libraries: The Federal System and Related Legislation [Updated November 26, 2008]
"Through the National Archives and Records Administration, the federal government currently manages and maintains 12 presidential libraries. Inaugurated with the Presidential Libraries Act of 1955, these entities are privately constructed on behalf of former Presidents and, upon completion, are deeded to the federal government. Deposited within these edifices are the official records and papers of the former President, as well as documentary materials of his family and, often, his political associates. These holdings are made available for public examination in accordance with prevailing law concerning custody, official secrecy, personal privacy, and other similar restrictions. This report provides a brief overview of the federal presidential libraries system and tracks the progress of related legislation (H.R. 1254, H.R. 1255, H.R. 5811, S. 886). It will be updated as events recommend."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-11-26
-
Executive Office of the President: An Historical Overview [Updated November 26, 2008]
"Established in 1939, the Executive Office of the President (EOP) consists of a group of federal agencies immediately serving the President. Among the oldest of these are the White House Office, where many of the President's personal assistants are located, and the Office of Management and Budget, which was established as the Bureau of the Budget in 1921 and by transfer became one of the original EOP units in 1939. Entities have been placed within the EOP by both presidential action and congressional determination. Some components have endured; others have been brief experiments. Some have been transferred to other quarters of the executive branch; others have been abolished with no successor. In large measure, the tenure and durability of an Executive Office agency is dependent upon its usefulness to the President -- as a managerial or coordinative auxiliary, a national symbol, or a haven of political patronage, among other considerations. This report reviews the particular circumstances of the creation of, and underlying authority for, the Executive Office of the President, and provides profiles of the entities that have been, and still are, located within that enclave."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-11-26
-
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status [Updated November 26, 2008]
"Recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission), the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) was initially established as an agency within the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 2004. Critics, however, maintained that the board appeared to be a presidential appendage, devoid of the capability to exercise independent judgment and assessment or to provide impartial findings and recommendations. This viewpoint gained acceptance in the 110th Congress when the PCLOB was reconstituted as an independent agency within the executive branch by the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act (IR9/11CA), signed into law on August 6, 2007. Monitoring the transition of the PCLOB to, and its initial operations in, its new independent status, this report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-11-26
-
Executive Branch Reorganization and Management Initiatives: A Brief Overview [Updated September 16, 2008]
"This report provides a brief overview of recent executive branch reorganization actions and related management initiatives. President George W. Bush came to office from a campaign which had emphasized efficiency in government, particularly through the use of information technology, but revealed no plans for executive branch reorganization. The departing Clinton Administration had conducted an active effort at 'reinventing government,' spearheaded by a National Performance Review (NPR) announced shortly after the 1993 inauguration. The NPR produced a series of reports proposing various organizational and operational reforms."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-09-16
-
Executive Branch Reorganization and Management Initiatives: A Brief Overview [Updated July 23, 2008]
From the Summary: "This report provides a brief overview of recent executive branch reorganization actions and related management initiatives. President George W. Bush came to office from a campaign which had emphasized efficiency in government, particularly through the use of information technology, but revealed no plans for executive branch reorganization. The departing Clinton Administration had conducted an active effort at 'reinventing government,' spearheaded by a National Performance Review (NPR) announced shortly after the 1993 inauguration. The NPR produced a series of reports proposing various organizational and operational reforms. […] At the outset of the 110th Congress, President Bush did not indicate any plans for major reorganization within the executive branch. However, the restoration of presidential reorganization plan authority appeared to remain of interest to the Bush Administration. Of likely interest to congressional overseers in the second session are such organizational issues as the efficiency, economy, and effectiveness of the administrative structure of the Department of Homeland Security; the organizational status of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); enhancement of the department's policy office; the operations of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, recently reconstituted as an independent establishment within the executive branch; and the recommendations of the HELP [Helping to Enhance the Livelihood of People Around the Globe] Commission to overhaul the organization and management of the foreign assistance program (H.R. 1, H.R. 1684, S. 4, S. 547). This report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-07-23
-
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status [July 21, 2008]
"Recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission), the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) was initially established as an agency within the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 2004. Critics, however, maintained that the board appeared to be a presidential appendage, devoid of the capability to exercise independent judgment and assessment or to provide impartial findings and recommendations. This viewpoint gained acceptance in the 110th Congress when the PCLOB was reconstituted as an independent agency within the executive branch by the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act (IR9/11CA), signed into law on August 6, 2007. Monitoring the transition of the PCLOB to, and its initial operations in, its new independent status, this report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-07-21
-
Presidential Advisers' Testimony Before Congressional Committees: An Overview [Updated July 16, 2008]
"Since the beginning of the federal government, Presidents have called upon executive branch officials to provide them with advice regarding matters of policy and administration. While Cabinet members were among the first to play such a role, the creation of the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 1939 and the various agencies located within that structure resulted in a large increase in the number and variety of presidential advisers. All senior staff members of the White House Office and the leaders of the various EOP agencies and instrumentalities could be said to serve as advisers to the President. Occasionally, these executive branch officials playing a presidential advisory role have been called upon to testify before congressional committees and subcommittees. Sometimes, such invited appearances have been prompted by allegations of personal misconduct on the part of the official, but they have also included instances when accountability for policymaking and administrative or managerial actions have instigated the request for testimony. Because such appearances before congressional committees or subcommittees seemingly could result in demands for advice proffered to the President, or the disclosure -- inadvertent or otherwise -- of such advice, there has been resistance, from time to time, by the Chief Executive to allowing such testimony."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Tatelman, Todd
2008-07-16
-
Organizing for Homeland Security: The Homeland Security Council Reconsidered [March 19, 2008]
"In the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush established the Office of Homeland Security and the Homeland Security Council (HSC). In his June 2002 proposal for a Department of Homeland Security, President Bush appeared to anticipate the continued operation of both of these entities. However, the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which mandated the new department, statutorily rechartered the HSC as an agency within the Executive Office of the President (EOP). Thereafter, the HSC disappeared from the public record, and its status today remains uncertain. Recently, some have called for the merger of the HSC with the National Security Council."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-03-19
-
Security Classification Policy and Procedure: E.O. 12958, as Amended [Updated March 17, 2008]
"After two years of preparation, E.O. 12958, prescribing security classification policy and procedure, was signed by President William Clinton in mid-April 1995. The order was prompted by changing security conditions in the aftermath of the end of the cold war and a desire for more economical and effective management of classified information. The directive was modified in late March 2003 by E.O. 13292, issued by President George W. Bush. Largely prescribed in a series of successive presidential executive orders issued over the past 50 years, security classification policy and procedure provide the rationale and arrangements for designating information officially secret for reasons of national security, and for its declassification as well."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-03-17
-
Presidential Advisers' Testimony Before Congressional Committees: An Overview [Updated March 17, 2008]
"Since the beginning of the federal government, Presidents have called upon executive branch officials to provide them with advice regarding matters of policy and administration. While Cabinet members were among the first to play such a role, the creation of the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 1939 and the various agencies located within that structure resulted in a large increase in the number and variety of presidential advisers. All senior staff members of the White House Office and the leaders of the various EOP agencies and instrumentalities could be said to serve as advisers to the President. Occasionally, these executive branch officials playing a presidential advisory role have been called upon to testify before congressional committees and subcommittees. Sometimes, such invited appearances have been prompted by allegations of personal misconduct on the part of the official, but they have also included instances when accountability for policymaking and administrative or managerial actions have instigated the request for testimony. Because such appearances before congressional committees or subcommittees seemingly could result in demands for advice proffered to the President, or the disclosure--inadvertent or otherwise--of such advice, there has been resistance, from time to time, by the Chief Executive to allowing such testimony. Congress has a constitutionally rooted right of access to the information it needs to perform its Article I legislative and oversight functions."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Tatelman, Todd
2008-03-17
-
Executive Office of the President: An Historical Overview [Updated March 17, 2008]
"Established in 1939, the Executive Office of the President (EOP) consists of a group of federal agencies immediately serving the President. Among the oldest of these are the White House Office, where many of the President's personal assistants are located, and the Office of Management and Budget, which was established as the Bureau of the Budget in 1921 and by transfer became one of the original EOP units in 1939. Entities have been placed within the EOP by both presidential action and congressional determination. Some components have endured; others have been brief experiments. Some have been transferred to other quarters of the executive branch; others have been abolished with no successor. In large measure, the tenure and durability of an Executive Office agency is dependent upon its usefulness to the President - as a managerial or coordinative auxiliary, a national symbol, or a haven of political patronage, among other considerations. This report reviews the particular circumstances of the creation of, and underlying authority for, the Executive Office of the President, and provides profiles of the entities that have been, and still are, located within that enclave."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-03-17
-
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status [Updated March 13, 2008]
"Recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission), the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) was initially established as an agency within the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 2004. Critics, however, maintained that the board appeared to be a presidential appendage, devoid of the capability to exercise independent judgment and assessment or to provide impartial findings and recommendations. This viewpoint gained acceptance in the 110th Congress when the PCLOB was reconstituted as an independent agency within the executive branch by the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act (IR9/11CA), signed into law on August 6, 2007. Monitoring the transition of the PCLOB to, and its initial operations in, its new independent status, this report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-03-13
-
Access to Government Information in the United States [March 13, 2008]
"The Constitution of the United States makes no specific allowance for any one of the co-equal branches to have access to information held by the others and contains no provision expressly establishing a procedure for, or a right of, public access to government information. Nonetheless, Congress has legislated various public access laws. These include two records access statutes -- the Freedom of Information Act (FOI Act or FOIA; 5 U.S.C. § 552) and the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. § 552a) -- and two meetings access statutes -- the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA; 5 U.S.C. App.) and the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. § 552b). Moreover, due to the American separation of powers model of government, interbranch conflicts over the accessibility of information are neither unexpected nor necessarily destructive. The federal courts, historically, have been reluctant to review and resolve 'political questions' involving information disputes between Congress and the executive branch. Although there is considerable interbranch cooperation, such conflicts probably will continue to occur on occasion."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Ginsberg, Wendy R.
2008-03-13
-
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status [February 20, 2008]
"Recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission), the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) was initially established as an agency within the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 2004. Critics, however, maintained that the board appeared to be a presidential appendage, devoid of the capability to exercise independent judgment and assessment or to provide impartial findings and recommendations. This viewpoint gained acceptance in the 110th Congress when the PCLOB was reconstituted as an independent agency within the executive branch by the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act (IR9/11CA), signed into law on August 6, 2007. Monitoring the transition of the PCLOB to, and its initial operations in, its new independent status, this report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-02-20
-
Security Classified and Controlled Information: History, Status, and Emerging Management Issues [Updated February 11, 2008]
"The security classification regime in use within the federal executive branch traces its origins to armed forces information protection practices of the World War I era. The classification system -- designating information, according to prescribed criteria and procedures, protected in accordance with one of three levels of sensitivity, based on the amount of harm to the national security that would result from its disclosure -- attained a presidential character in 1940 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the initial executive order prescribing these information security arrangements. […] In the current environment, still affected by the long shadow of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, several issues have arisen regarding security classified and controlled information. […] Some agencies were recently discovered to be withdrawing archived records from public access and reclassifying them. Critically evaluating this activity, ISOO has indicated that the federal government needs to apply a more integrated approach among the classifying agencies. The force of, and authority for, information control markings, other than security classification labels, have come under congressional scrutiny, prompting concerns about their number, variety, lack of underlying managerial regimes, and effects. Among those effects, contend the Government Accountability Office and the manager of the Information Sharing Environment for the intelligence community, is the obstruction of information sharing across the federal government and with state and local governments. These and related matters, including remedial legislation (H.R. 984), are examined in this report, which will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-02-11
-
Security Classified and Controlled Information: History, Status, and Emerging Management Issues [Updated January 2, 2008]
"The security classification regime in use within the federal executive branch traces its origins to armed forces information protection practices of the World War I era. The classification system -- designating information, according to prescribed criteria and procedures, protected in accordance with one of three levels of sensitivity, based on the amount of harm to the national security that would result from its disclosure -- attained a presidential character in 1940 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the initial executive order prescribing these information security arrangements. […] In the current environment, still affected by the long shadow of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, several issues have arisen regarding security classified and controlled information. […] Some agencies were recently discovered to be withdrawing archived records from public access and reclassifying them. Critically evaluating this activity, ISOO has indicated that the federal government needs to apply a more integrated approach among the classifying agencies. The force of, and authority for, information control markings, other than security classification labels, have come under congressional scrutiny, prompting concerns about their number, variety, lack of underlying managerial regimes, and effects. Among those effects, contend the Government Accountability Office and the manager of the Information Sharing Environment for the intelligence community, is the obstruction of information sharing across the federal government and with state and local governments. These and related matters, including remedial legislation (H.R. 984), are examined in this report, which will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-01-31
-
Executive Branch Reorganization and Management Initiatives: A Brief Overview [Updated January 14, 2008]
"This report provides a brief overview of recent executive branch reorganization actions and related management initiatives. President George W. Bush came to office from a campaign which had emphasized efficiency in government, particularly through the use of information technology, but revealed no plans for executive branch reorganization. The departing Clinton Administration had conducted an active effort at 'reinventing government,'spearheaded by a National Performance Review (NPR) announced shortly after the 1993 inauguration. The NPR produced a series of reports proposing various organizational and operational reforms. […].At the outset of the 110th Congress, President Bush did not indicate any plans for major reorganization within the executive branch. However, the restoration of presidential reorganization plan authority appeared to remain of interest to the Bush Administration. Of likely interest to congressional overseers in the second session are such organizational issues as the efficiency, economy, and effectiveness of the administrative structure of the Department of Homeland Security; the organizational status of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); enhancement of the department's policy office; the operations of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, recently reconstituted as an independent establishment within the executive branch; and the recommendations of the HELP Commission to overhaul the organization and management of the foreign assistance program (H.R. 1, H.R. 1684, S. 4, S. 547). This report will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-01-14
-
Presidential Directives: Background and Overview [Updated January 2, 2008]
"From the earliest days of the federal government, Presidents, exercising magisterial or executive power not unlike that of a monarch, from time to time have issued directives establishing new policy, decreeing the commencement or cessation of some action, or ordaining that notice be given to some declaration. The instruments used by Presidents in these regards have come to be known by various names, and some have prescribed forms and purposes. Executive orders and proclamations are probably two of the best-known types, largely because of their long-standing use and publication in the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations. Others are less familiar, some because they are cloaked in official secrecy. There is, as well, the oral presidential directive, the sense of which is captured in an announcement that records what the President has prescribed or instructed. This report provides an overview of the different kinds of directives that have primarily been utilized by 20th century Presidents. Presenting background on the historical development, accounting, use, and effect of such directives, it will be updated as events suggest."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2008-01-02
-
Access to Government Information In the United States [December 5, 2007]
"The Constitution of the United States makes no specific allowance for any one of the co-equal branches to have access to information held by the others and contains no provision expressly establishing a procedure for, or a right of, public access to government information. Nonetheless, Congress has legislated various public access laws. These include two records access statutes -- the Freedom of Information Act (FOI Act or FOIA; 5 U.S.C. § 552) and the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. § 552a) -- and two meetings access statutes -- the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA; 5 U.S.C. App.) and the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. § 552b). Moreover, due to the American separation of powers model of government, interbranch conflicts over the accessibility of information are neither unexpected nor necessarily destructive. The federal courts, historically, have been reluctant to review and resolve 'political questions' involving information disputes between Congress and the executive branch. Although there is considerable interbranch cooperation, such conflicts probably will continue to occur on occasion."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Kolakowski, Michael W.
2007-12-05
-
Security Classified and Controlled Information: History, Status, and Emerging Management Issues [Updated October 24, 2007]
"The security classification regime in use within the federal executive branch traces its origins to armed forces information protection practices of the World War I era. The classification system -- designating information, according to prescribed criteria and procedures, protected in accordance with one of three levels of sensitivity, based on the amount of harm to the national security that would result from its disclosure -- attained a presidential character in 1940 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the initial executive order prescribing these information security arrangements. […] In the current environment, still affected by the long shadow of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, several issues have arisen regarding security classified and controlled information. […] Some agencies were recently discovered to be withdrawing archived records from public access and reclassifying them. Critically evaluating this activity, ISOO has indicated that the federal government needs to apply a more integrated approach among the classifying agencies. The force of, and authority for, information control markings, other than security classification labels, have come under congressional scrutiny, prompting concerns about their number, variety, lack of underlying managerial regimes, and effects. Among those effects, contend the Government Accountability Office and the manager of the Information Sharing Environment for the intelligence community, is the obstruction of information sharing across the federal government and with state and local governments. These and related matters, including remedial legislation (H.R. 984), are examined in this report, which will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-10-24
-
National Emergency Powers [Updated August 30, 2007]
"The President of the United States has available certain powers that may be exercised in the event that the nation is threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances (other than natural disasters, war, or near-war situations). Such powers may be stated explicitly or implied by the Constitution, assumed by the Chief Executive to be permissible constitutionally, or inferred from or specified by statute. Through legislation, Congress has made a great many delegations of authority in this regard over the past 200 years. There are, however, limits and restraints upon the President in his exercise of emergency powers. With the exception of the habeas corpus clause, the Constitution makes no allowance for the suspension of any of its provisions during a national emergency. Disputes over the constitutionality or legality of the exercise of emergency powers are judicially reviewable. Indeed, both the judiciary and Congress, as co-equal branches, can restrain the executive regarding emergency powers. So can public opinion. Furthermore, since 1976, the President has been subject to certain procedural formalities in utilizing some statutorily delegated emergency authority. The National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601-1651) eliminated or modified some statutory grants of emergency authority; required the President to declare formally the existence of a national emergency and to specify what statutory authority, activated by the declaration, would be used; and provided Congress a means to countermand the President's declaration and the activated authority being sought. The development of this regulatory statute and subsequent declarations of national emergency are reviewed in this report, which is updated as events require."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-08-30
-
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: Congressional Refinements [Updated August 24, 2007]
"Among the recommendations made by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission) in its final report was the creation of a board within the executive branch to oversee adherence to guidelines on, and the commitment to defend, civil liberties by the federal government. This CRS report examines the realization of this recommendation with the creation of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB), and current efforts to refine the mandate and the mission of the board (H.R. 1, S. 4), and will be updated as events warrant."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-08-24
-
Presidential Directives: Background and Overview [Updated August 9, 2007]
"From the earliest days of the federal government, Presidents, exercising magisterial or executive power not unlike that of a monarch, from time to time have issued directives establishing new policy, decreeing the commencement or cessation of some action, or ordaining that notice be given to some declaration. The instruments used by Presidents in these regards have come to be known by various names, and some have prescribed forms and purposes. Executive orders and proclamations are probably two of the best-known types, largely because of their long-standing use and publication in the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations. Others are less familiar, some because they are cloaked in official secrecy. There is, as well, the oral presidential directive, the sense of which is captured in an announcement that records what the President has prescribed or instructed. This report provides an overview of the different kinds of directives that have primarily been utilized by 20th century Presidents. Presenting background on the historical development, accounting, use, and effect of such directives, it will be updated as events suggest."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-08-09
-
Presidential Advisers' Testimony before Congressional Committees: An Overview [Updated August 6, 2007]
"Since the beginning of the federal government, Presidents have called upon executive branch officials to provide them with advice regarding matters of policy and administration. While Cabinet members were among the first to play such a role, the creation of the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 1939 and the various agencies located within that structure resulted in a large increase in the number and variety of presidential advisers. All senior staff members of the White House Office and the leaders of the various EOP agencies and instrumentalities could be said to serve as advisers to the President. Occasionally, these executive branch officials playing a presidential advisory role have been called upon to testify before congressional committees and subcommittees. Sometimes, such invited appearances have been prompted by allegations of personal misconduct on the part of the official, but they have also included instances when accountability for policymaking and administrative or managerial actions have instigated the request for testimony. Because such appearances before congressional committees or subcommittees seemingly could result in demands for advice proffered to the President, or the disclosure-inadvertent or otherwise-of such advice, there has been resistance, from time to time, by the Chief Executive to allowing such testimony. Congress has a constitutionally rooted right of access to the information it needs to perform its Article I legislative and oversight functions."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Tatelman, Todd
2007-08-06
-
Executive Branch Reorganization and Management Initiatives: A Brief Overview [Updated July 10, 2007]
From the Summary: "This report provides a brief overview of recent executive branch reorganization actions and related management initiatives. President George W. Bush came to office from a campaign which had emphasized efficiency in government, particularly through the use of information technology, but revealed no plans for executive branch reorganization. The departing Clinton Administration had conducted an active effort at 'reinventing government,' spearheaded by a National Performance Review (NPR) announced shortly after the 1993 inauguration. The NPR produced a series of reports proposing various organizational and operational reforms. A number of major NPR recommendations were awaiting implementation when the 1994 congressional elections resulted in Republican majority control of both houses of the 104th Congress. Republican congressional leaders had unveiled a 'Contract With America' reform plan in late September 1994. Its core principles regarded the federal government as being too big, spending too much, being unresponsive to the citizenry, and perpetuating burdensome regulations. At the conclusion of the 104th Congress, both the President and Republican congressional leaders could claim some victories in downsizing government, but no department was eliminated, and only a few small agencies were abolished. Following his 2001 inauguration, President Bush announced plans to address a number of management problems in the federal government. Then, in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 (9/11), terrorist attacks, the organization of the federal government for maintaining homeland security and combating terrorism became a major consideration for both the President and Congress."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-07-10
-
Security Classification Policy and Procedure: E.O. 12958, as Amended [Updated April 23, 2007]
"After two years of preparation, E.O. 12958, prescribing security classification policy and procedure, was signed by President William Clinton in mid-April 1995. The order was prompted by changing security conditions in the aftermath of the end of the cold war and a desire for more economical and effective management of classified information. The directive was modified in late March 2003 by E.O. 13292, issued by President George W. Bush. Largely prescribed in a series of successive presidential executive orders issued over the past 50 years, security classification policy and procedure provide the rationale and arrangements for designating information officially secret for reasons of national security, and for its declassification as well."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-04-23
-
Presidential Directives: Background and Overview [Updated April 23, 2007]
"From the earliest days of the federal government, Presidents, exercising magisterial or executive power not unlike that of a monarch, from time to time have issued directives establishing new policy, decreeing the commencement or cessation of some action, or ordaining that notice be given to some declaration. The instruments used by Presidents in these regards have come to be known by various names, and some have prescribed forms and purposes. Executive orders and proclamations are probably two of the best-known types, largely because of their long-standing use and publication in the 'Federal Register' and the 'Code of Federal Regulations'. Others are less familiar, some because they are cloaked in official secrecy. There is, as well, the oral presidential directive, the sense of which is captured in an announcement that records what the President has prescribed or instructed. This report provides an overview of the different kinds of directives that have primarily been utilized by 20th century Presidents. Presenting background on the historical development, accounting, use, and effect of such directives, it will be updated as events suggest."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold
2007-04-23
-
Access to Government Information in the United States [Updated April 23, 2007]
"The Constitution of the United States makes no specific allowance for any one of the co-equal branches to have access to information held by the others and contains no provision expressly establishing a procedure for, or a right of, public access to government information. Nonetheless, Congress has legislated various public access laws. These include two records access statutes - the Freedom of Information Act (FOI Act or FOIA; 5 U.S.C. § 552) and the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. § 552a) - and two meetings access statutes - the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA; 5 U.S.C. App.) and the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. § 552b). Moreover, due to the American separation of powers model of government, interbranch conflicts over the accessibility of information are neither unexpected nor necessarily destructive. The federal courts, historically, have been reluctant to review and resolve 'political questions' involving information disputes between Congress and the executive branch. Although there is considerable interbranch cooperation, such conflicts probably will continue to occur on occasion."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Kolakowski, Michael W.
2007-04-23
-
Presidential Advisers' Testimony before Congressional Committees: An Overview [Updated April 10, 2007]
"Since the beginning of the federal government, Presidents have called upon executive branch officials to provide them with advice regarding matters of policy and administration. While Cabinet members were among the first to play such a role, the creation of the Executive Office of the President (EOP) in 1939 and the various agencies located within that structure resulted in a large increase in the number and variety of presidential advisers. All senior staff members of the White House Office and the leaders of the various EOP agencies and instrumentalities could be said to serve as advisers to the President. Occasionally, these executive branch officials playing a presidential advisory role have been called upon to testify before congressional committees and subcommittees. Sometimes, such invited appearances have been prompted by allegations of personal misconduct on the part of the official, but they have also included instances when accountability for policymaking and administrative or managerial actions have instigated the request for testimony. Because such appearances before congressional committees or subcommittees seemingly could result in demands for advice proffered to the President, or the disclosure - inadvertent or otherwise - of such advice, there has been resistance, from time to time, by the Chief Executive to allowing such testimony."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Relyea, Harold; Tatelman, Todd
2007-04-10
