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Executive Orders Historical Archive
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Executive Order 10615 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Neutral (+0.02) 📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation

Executive Order 10615—Creating an Emergency Board To Investigate a Dispute Between Certain Carriers Represented by the Eastern, Western, and Southeastern Carriers' Conference Committees and Certain of Their Employees

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower
•
Friday, June 17, 1955
•
5 min read (1,066 words)

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 5 min read (1,066 words) • ● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate

I hereby create a board of three members, to be appointed by me, to investigate the said dispute.

View all 2 directives ↓
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
Framers' constitutional debate ↓
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Sovereign State Governments & Localities
Inspect unabridged text ↓

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.

Signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on June 17, 1955, this order concerns Creating an Emergency Board To Investigate a Dispute Between Certain Carriers Represented by the Eastern, Western, and Southeastern Carriers' Conference Committees and Certain of Their Employees. I hereby create a board of three members, to be appointed by me, to investigate the said dispute. No member of the said board shall be pecuniarily or otherwise interested in any organization of employees or any carrier. The board shall report its findings to the President with respect to the said dispute within thirty days from the date of this order.

Constitutional Assessment: Reviewed under the Tenth Amendment and the principle of dual federalism, this order touches upon domains traditionally reserved to the sovereign States. The Framers would caution against any attempt to commandeer state officers or displace local police powers through federal executive fiat.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

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I hereby create a board of three members, to be appointed by me, to investigate the said dispute.

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As provided by section 10 of the Railway Labor Act, as amended, from this date and for thirty days after the board has made its report to the President, no change, except by agreement, shall be made by any of the carriers involved or their employees in the conditions out of which the said dispute arose.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities

Policy Areas & Topics

🏷️ Infrastructure & Transportation 🏷️ Labor & Employment 🏷️ Education
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The Framers' Constitutional Council

1787 Prism

Evaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.

🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority)
§

"When the President acts pursuant to an express or implied authorization of Congress, his authority is at its maximum, for it includes all that he possesses in his own right plus all that Congress can delegate."

— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
JM

James Madison

Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy

"The constitutional magistracy was designed not to invent policy, but to be the faithful instrument of the laws passed by the people's representatives." — Speech in the First Congress (1789)

Madison would approve the structural posture of this order. The President acts strictly in subordination to statutory authority granted under Article II, Section 3 ("take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed"). The checks and balances hold firm because the policy origin remains with the legislature.

Madisonian Stance: Concurring (Statutory)
AH

Alexander Hamilton

The Energetic Executive & Unified Command

"A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government; and a government ill executed, whatever it may be in theory, must be, in practice, a bad government." — Federalist No. 70 (1788)

Hamilton would view this directive as the natural and indispensable functioning of administrative leadership. Without the power to coordinate agencies, manage personnel, and resolve operational ambiguities, the modern presidency would be reduced to an impotent figurehead.

Hamiltonian Stance: Supportive of Execution
GM

George Mason

Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." — 10th Amendment to the US Constitution (1791)

Mason would scrutinize whether this federal directive intrudes into police powers, land stewardship, or municipal domains historically reserved to local citizens. The Anti-Federalist demand is that federal administration must never supplant state self-governance.

Anti-Federalist Stance: Eternal Vigilance Required
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Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions

An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.

🛡️ High Constitutional Concordance
23 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8

Legislative Encroachment & Purse

Low Friction

Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.

Benchmark: Power of the purse, taxes/tariffs, and rule of law reserved to Congress.
Dimension 2 • Art. II, §1 & §3

Executive Scope & Faithfulness

Low Friction

Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.

Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment

Federalism & State Sovereignty

Moderate Friction

Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.

Benchmark: Police powers and un-delegated responsibilities reserved to the States.
Dimension 4 • 5th & 14th Amendments

Due Process & Individual Rights

Low Friction

Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.

Benchmark: Protection of private property, contracts, liberty, and procedural justice.
Dimension 5 • Separation of Powers

Youngstown Jacksonian Tier

Low Friction

The President operates strictly as the constitutional Chief Executive, carrying out policy established by Congress with strong statutory backing.

Benchmark: Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
⚖️ Audit Synthesis

This order operates in close harmony with statutory authority and standard Article II supervisory execution.

Weighted composite: Art. I (25%), Art. II (25%), Federalism (15%), Due Process (15%), Youngstown (20%).
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How to read these dimensions: Executive power expands whenever an administration acts without explicit statutory authorization from Congress (Article I), touches upon police powers historically reserved to the states (Tenth Amendment), or limits private rights and property without judicial process. A low friction score indicates strict concordance with enacted law; a high friction score highlights orders testing the limits of presidential discretion.
Total Words
1,066
7,617 characters
Estimated Read Time
5 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
10.5
High School
Language Tone Score
+0.02
Constitutional Neutral
How is this scored?
Text size:

Official Archival Text

View Source Document

WHEREAS a dispute exists between certain carriers represented by the Eastern, Western, and Southeastern Carriers' Conference Committees which are designated in List A attached hereto and made a part hereof, and certain of their employees represented by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Engine-men, a labor organization; and WHEREAS this dispute has not heretofore been adjusted under the provisions of the Railway Labor Act, as amended; and WHEREAS this dispute, in the judgment of the National Mediation Board, threatens substantially to interrupt interstate commerce to a degree such as to deprive the country of essential transportation service:

NOW, THEREFORE, #now-therefore

by virtue of the authority vested in me by section 10 of the Railway Labor Act, as amended (45 U.S.C. 160), I hereby create a board of three members, to be appointed by me, to investigate the said dispute. No member of the said board shall be pecuniarily or otherwise interested in any organization of employees or any carrier. The board shall report its findings to the President with respect to the said dispute within thirty days from the date of this order. As provided by section 10 of the Railway Labor Act, as amended, from this date and for thirty days after the board has made its report to the President, no change, except by agreement, shall be made by any of the carriers involved or their employees in the conditions out of which the said dispute arose. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER

THE WHITE HOUSE, #signature

June 17, 1955. LIST A EASTERN REGION Akron, Canton & Youngstown Railroad. Aliquippa & Southern Railroad. Ann Arbor Railroad. Baltimore and Ohio Railroad: Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh Territory. Buffalo and Susquehanna District. Baltimore & Ohio-Chicago Terminal Railroad. Curtis Bay Railroad. Staten Island Rapid Transit Railway. Strouds Creek & Muddlety Railroad. Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad. Boston and Maine Railroad. Bush Terminal Railroad. Central Railroad Company of New Jersey. Central Vermont Railway. Chicago, Indianapolis & Louisville Railway. Cincinnati Union Terminal Company. Cuyahoga Valley Railway. Delaware and Hudson Railroad. Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. Detroit, Toledo & Ironton Railroad. Erie Railroad. Grand Trunk Western Railway. Indianapolis Union Railway. Lake Terminal Railroad. Lehigh & New England Railroad. Lehigh Valley Railroad. Long Island Railroad. Maine Central Railroad: Portland Terminal. McKeesport Connecting Railroad. Monongahela Connecting Railroad. Monongahela Railway. Montour Railroad. Newburgh & South Shore Railway. New York Central System: New York Central Railroad—Buffalo & East. New York Central Railroad—West of Buffalo. Ohio Central Division. Federal Valley. Michigan Central Railroad. Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway. Peoria & Eastern Railway. Boston and Albany Railroad. Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad. Lake Erie & Eastern Railway. Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad. Cleveland Union Terminals Company. New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad. New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad. Pennsylvania Railroad: Baltimore & Eastern Railroad. Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines. Pittsburgh & West Virginia Railway. Pittsburgh, Chartiers & Youghiogheny Railway. Reading Company. Toledo Terminal Railroad. Union Freight Railroad (Boston). Washington Terminal Company. Youngstown and Northern Railroad. WESTERN REGION Alton and Southern Railroad. Atchison, Topeka and Sante Fe Railway: Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway. Panhandle and Santa Fe Railway. Belt Railway Company of Chicago. Camas Prairie Railroad. Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad. Chicago & Illinois Midland Railway. Chicago and North Western Railway. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. Chicago Great Western Railway—Including South St. Paul Terminal. Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad. Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad: Joint Texas Division of CRI&P RR and Ft. Worth & Denver Railway. Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railway. Colorado and Southern Railway. Davenport, Rock Island and North Western Railway. Des Moines Union Railway. Duluth. South Shore and Atlantic Railroad. East St. Louis Junction Railroad. Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway. Fort Worth and Denver Railway. Galveston, Houston and Henderson Railroad. Great Northern Railway. Green Bay and Western Railroad: Kewaunee, Green Bay and Western Railroad. Gulf Coast Lines: Asherton and Gulf Railway. Asphalt Belt Railway. Houston and Brazos Valley Railway. Rio Grande City Railway. St. Louis, Brownsville & Mexico Railway. San Antonio Southern Railway. San Antonio, Uvalde & Gulf Railroad. San Benito and Rio Grande Valley Railway. Sugar Land Railway. Houston Belt & Terminal Railway. Illinois Central Railroad. International-Great Northern Railway. Kansas City Southern Railway. King Street Passenger Station (Seattle) Los Angeles Junction Railway. Louisiana & Arkansas Railway. Manufacturers Railway. Midland Valley Railroad: Kansas, Oklahoma & Gulf Railway. Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway. Railway Tfr. Company of the City of Minneapolis. Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad. Minnesota Transfer Railway. Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad: Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Company of Texas. Missouri Pacific Railroad: Missouri-Illinois Railroad. Northern Pacific Railway. Northern Pacific Terminal Company of Oregon. Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Ogden Union Railway and Depot Company. Oregon, California & Eastern Railway. Peoria and Pekin Union Railway. Port Terminal Railroad Association. St. Joseph Terminal Railroad. St. Louis-San Francisco Railway: St. Louis. San Francisco & Texas Railway. St. Louis Southwestern Railway. St. Paul Union Depot Company. San Diego & Arizona Eastern Railway. Sioux City Terminal Railway. Southern Pacific Company (Pacific Lines) (Excluding former El Paso & Southwestern System and Nogales. Arizona Yard). Southern Pacific Company (Pacific Lines) (Former El Paso and Southwestern System). Spokane International Railroad. Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway: Oregon Trunk Railway. Oregon Electric Railway. Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis. Texas and New Orleans Railroad. Texas and Pacific Railway: Fort Worth Belt Railway. Texas-New Mexico Railway. Texas Short Line Railway. TP-MP Terminal Railroad of New Orleans. Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad. Union Pacific Railroad. Union Railway (Memphis). Union Terminal Company (Dallas). Wabash Railroad, Lines West of Detroit and Toledo. Wabash Railroad, Lines East of Detroit (Buffalo Division). Western Pacific Railroad. SOUTHEASTERN REGION Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. Atlanta & West Point Railroad: Western Railway of Alabama, Atlanta Joint Terminals. Birmingham Southern Railroad. Charleston & Western Carolina Railway. Chesapeake & Ohio Railway. Clinchfield Railroad. Florida East Coast Railway. Georgia Railroad. Gulf Mobile & Ohio Railroad. Kentucky & Indiana Terminal Railroad. Louisville & Nashville Railroad. Norfolk Southern Railway Company. Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad. Norfolk & Western Railway. Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Railroad: Potomac Yards. Seaboard Air Line Railway Company. Southern Railway (Including State University Railroad): Alabama Great Southern. Cincinnati New Orleans & Texas Pacific Railway. Georgia Southern & Florida Railway. Southern Railway (Including State University Railroad) Harriman & Northeastern Railroad Company. New Orleans & Northeastern Railroad Company. New Orleans Terminal Company. St. Johns River Terminal Company. Tennessee Central Railway Company. Virginian Railway Company.

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Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 10,615 (June 17, 1955), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-10615-creating-emergency-board-investigate-dispute-between-certain.