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Executive Order 11968 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 11968—Withholding of Income or Employment Taxes by Federal Agencies

Jimmy Carter Jimmy Carter
•
Monday, January 31, 1977
•
3 min read (564 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 Jimmy Carter on 1977-01-31, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Withholding of Income or Employment Taxes by Federal Agencies." 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

▪ Any agreement affecting members of the Armed Forces shall also provide that the head of an agency may rely on the certificate of legal residence of a member of the Armed Forces in determining his or her residence for tax withholding purposes.
▪ No agreement shall require the collection by an agency of delinquent tax liabilities of an employee or a member of the Armed Forces.
▪ The head of each agency shall designate, or provide for the designation of, the officers or employees whose duty it shall be to withhold taxes, file required returns, and direct payment of the taxes withheld, in accordance with this Order, any regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, and the applicable agreement.
▪ 10407 of November 6, 1952, 10672 of July 9, 1956, and 11863 of June 12, 1975, are hereby revoked.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Financial Institutions & Monetary Authorities
Total Words
564
3,315 characters
Estimated Read Time
3 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
21
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.02
Framers' Alignment index
📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 11968, Jimmy Carter (Jan 31, 1977). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-11968-withholding-income-or-employment-taxes-federal-agencies.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →
WITHHOLDING OF DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, STATE AND CITY INCOME OR EMPLOYMENT TAXES By virtue of the authority vested in me by Sections 5516, 5517 and 5520 of Title 5 of the United States Code, and Section 301 of Title 3 of the United States Code, and as President of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: SECTION 1. Whenever the Secretary of the Treasury enters into an agreement pursuant to Sections 5516, 5517, or 5520 of Title 5 of the United States Code, with the District of Columbia, a State, or a city, as the case may be, with regard to the withholding, by an agency of the United States, hereinafter referred to as an agency, of income or employment taxes from the pay of Federal employees or members of the Armed Forces, the Secretary of the Treasury shall ensure that each agreement is consistent with those sections and regulations, including this Order, issued thereunder. SEC. 2. Each agreement shall provide (a) when tax withholding shall begin, (b) that the head of an agency may rely on the withholding certificate of an employee or a member of the Armed Forces in withholding taxes, (c) that the method for calculating the amount to be withheld for District of Columbia, State or city income or employment taxes shall produce approximately the tax required to be withheld by the District of Columbia or State law, or city ordinance, whichever is applicable, and (d) that procedures for the withholding, filing of returns, and payment of the withheld taxes to the District of Columbia, State or city shall conform to the usual fiscal practices of agencies. Any agreement affecting members of the Armed Forces shall also provide that the head of an agency may rely on the certificate of legal residence of a member of the Armed Forces in determining his or her residence for tax withholding purposes. No agreement shall require the collection by an agency of delinquent tax liabilities of an employee or a member of the Armed Forces. SEC. 3. The head of each agency shall designate, or provide for the designation of, the officers or employees whose duty it shall be to withhold taxes, file required returns, and direct payment of the taxes withheld, in accordance with this Order, any regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, and the applicable agreement. SEC. 4. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to prescribe additional regulations to implement Sections 5516, 5517, and 5520 of Title 5 of the United States Code, and this Order. SEC. 5. Executive Order Nos. 10407 of November 6, 1952, 10672 of July 9, 1956, and 11863 of June 12, 1975, are hereby revoked. However, all actions heretofore taken by the President or his delegates in respect of the matters affected by this Order and in force at the time of the issuance of this Order, including any regulations prescribed or approved by the President or his delegates in respect of such matters and any existing agreements approved by his delegates, shall, except as they may be inconsistent with the provisions of this Order, remain in effect until amended, modified, or revoked pursuant to the authority conferred by this Order, unless sooner terminated by operation of Jaw. JIMMY CARTER The White House, January 31, 1977. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 3:11 p.m., February 2, 1977]