Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
This executive order, signed by President Gerald R. Ford on 1977-01-07, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Federal Property Review." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.
Constitutional Assessment: Evaluated against the Fifth Amendment, this action touches upon property or economic rights. An early statesman would insist upon strict adherence to due process of law and the constitutional guarantee that private holdings shall not be encumbered or taken for public purposes without just compensation and lawful process.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
▪By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the United States of America, including section 205 (a) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U.S.C.
▪The Council shall consist of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, who shall be its Chairman, the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality, and such other members as the President may from time to time specify.
▪The Council shall submit such recommendations and cause such reports to be submitted to the President as may be appropriate.
▪All Executive agencies shall periodically review their real property holdings and conduct surveys of such property in accordance with standards and procedures determined by the Administrator of General Services pursuant to section 206 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U.S.C.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Executive Branch Departments
🏛️ General Body of the People
Total Words
539
3,337 characters
Estimated Read Time
3 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
18.6
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.02
Framers' Alignment index
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Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 11954, Gerald R. Ford (Jan 7, 1977). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-11954-federal-property-review.
Official Document Text
Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)
By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the United States of America, including section 205 (a) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U.S.C. 486 (a)), and as President of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: SECTION 1. (a) The Federal Property Council (hereinafter referred to as the Council) is hereby reconstituted in the Executive Office of the President. The Council shall consist of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, who shall be its Chairman, the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality, and such other members as the President may from time to time specify. (b) Whenever requested by the Administrator of General Services or the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the Council shall review the reports made by the Administrator of General Services pursuant to section 4 of this order, with particular attention to resolving conflicting claims on, ;and alternate uses for, any property described in those reports, consistent with laws governing Federal real property. The Council shall submit such recommendations and cause such reports to be submitted to the President as may be appropriate. SEC. 2. All Executive agencies shall periodically review their real property holdings and conduct surveys of such property in accordance with standards and procedures determined by the Administrator of General Services pursuant to section 206 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U.S.C. 487), and this order. SEC. 3. The Administrator of General Services shall issue standards and procedures, conduct surveys, and cause surveys to be conducted, to ensure that the real property holdings of Executive agencies shall continually be evaluated with special emphasis on the identification of proper-ties that are not utilized, are under utilized, or are not being put to optimum use. The Administrator shall consult with appropriate Executive agencies in order to (a) identify real property that is excess or surplus to the needs of the Executive agencies, and (b) make such real property available for its most beneficial use under the various laws of the United States affecting such property. SEC. 4. The Administrator of General Services shall report to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget with respect to any property or portion thereof which has not been reported excess to the requirements of the holding agency and which, in the judgment of the Administrator, is not utilized, is under utilized, or is not being put to optimum use, and which he recommends should be reported as excess property. SEC. 5. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall review Federal real property policies and the objectives of the Executive branch of the Government; and shall review the reports made by the Administrator of General Services pursuant to section 4 of this order, as well as other reports relating to Federal real property. The Director shall submit such recommendations and cause such reports to be submitted to the President as may be appropriate. SEC. 6. Executive Order No. 11724 of June 25, 1973, is hereby superseded. GERALD R. FORD The White House, January 7, 1977.