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Executive Order 11959 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 11959—Administration of Foreign Assistance and Related Functions

Gerald R. Ford Gerald R. Ford
•
Tuesday, January 18, 1977
•
4 min read (726 words)

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

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 1977-01-18, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Administration of Foreign Assistance and Related Functions." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.

Constitutional Assessment: Scrutinized through Article II, Section 2, this action exercises the President's constitutional role as Commander in Chief. Early Framers recognized broad executive discretion in commanding military forces during conflict, provided it remains bounded by congressional declarations and respects civilian domestic courts.

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 621 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended (22 U.S.C.
▪ 10973, as amended, is hereby further amended as follows: SECTION 1.
▪ Is amended by striking out "and (6) " and inserting in lieu thereof "(6) sections 413 (b) and 607 of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (90 Stat.
▪ Is revoked and the following new section is substituted therefor: "SEC.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities
Total Words
726
4,286 characters
Estimated Read Time
4 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
12.8
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.02
Framers' Alignment index
📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 11959, Gerald R. Ford (Jan 18, 1977). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-11959-administration-foreign-assistance-and-related-functions.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →
By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the United States of America, including Section 621 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended (22 U.S.C. 2381), and Section 301 of Title 3 of the United States Code, and as President of the United States of America, Executive Order No. 10973, as amended, is hereby further amended as follows: SECTION 1. Section 101 is amended by striking out "and (6) " and inserting in lieu thereof "(6) sections 413 (b) and 607 of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 761, 768; 22 U.S.C. 2431, note, 2394a), and (7) ". SEC. 2. Section 105 is revoked and the following new section is substituted therefor: "SEC. 105. ALLOCATION OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE. "In carrying out the functions conferred upon the President by section 653 of the Act, the Secretary of State shall consult with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.". SEC. 3. Subsection (c) of Section 201 is revoked. SEC. 4. Section 202 is amended to read as follows: "SEC. 202. REPORTS AND INFORMATION. In carrying out the functions under sections 514(e) and 634(b) of the Act delegated to him by section 201 of this order, the Secretary of Defense shall consult with the Secretary of State.". SEC. 5. Section 203 is amended to read as follows: "SEC. 203. EXCLUSIONS FROM DELEGATION TO SECRETARY OF DEFENSE. The following described functions conferred upon the President by the Act are excluded from the functions delegated by the provisions of section 201 (a) of this order: "(a) Those under section 502 (B) (a) (3) of the Act, except to the extent they relate to functions under the Act administered by the Department of Defense. "(b) Those under sections 504 (a), 505 (a) relating to other provisions required by the President, and 505 (d), (e), and (g) of the Act. "(c) Those relating to consent under sections 505(a) (1) and (4) of the Act. " (d) Those under sections 505 (b) (1) , (2) and (3) of the Act to the extent that they pertain to countries which agree to the conditions set forth therein. "(e) Those of negotiating, concluding and terminating international agreements.". SEC. 6. Section 301 is amended to read as follows: "SEC. 301. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. There are delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury the functions conferred upon the President by the third sentence of section 102(d) as it relates to international development organizations in which the United States is represented by the Secretary of the Treasury, section 301 (e) (3) as it relates to organizations referred to in section 301 (e) (2), the second sentence of section 612 (a), section 634(f), and section 634(8) of the Act. The Secretary of the Treasury shall continue to administer any open special foreign country accounts established pursuant to former section 514 of the Act as enacted by section 201(f) of Public Law 92-226 (86 Stat. 25) and repealed by Section 12(b) (5) of Public Law 93-189 (87 Stat. 722).". SEC. 7. Section 401 is amended as follows: (a) Subsection (a) is amended: (1) by inserting "505(c)" immediately after "504 (b) "; and (2) by inserting "620(x), 620A" immediately after "620(d)"; and (3) by striking out "and 633(b)" and inserting in lieu thereof "633(b), 662(x), and 663(b)". (b) Subsection (c) is amended: (1) by striking out "481 " and inserting in lieu thereof "481(a),504(a)(6)";and (2) by inserting "505(4) (2) (A), 505(d) (3) " immediately after "505 (b) (4),"; and (3) by striking out "and 634(c)" and inserting in lieu thereof "634(c), 663(a) and 669(b) (1)". (c) Subsection (d) (1) is amended to read as follows: "(d) (1) Those under section 503 (a) which relate to findings: Provided, That the Secretary of State in the implementation of the functions delegated to him under section 505 (a) (1), (a) (4) and (e) of the Act, is authorized to find, in the case of a proposed transfer of a defense article or related training or a related defense service by a foreign country or international organization to a foreign country or international organization not otherwise eligible under section 503(a) of the Act, whether the proposed transfer will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace." GERALD R. FORD The White House, January 18, 1977.