By the authority vested in me as President of the United States of America by the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, as amended (50 U.S.C. 98 et seq.), and by Section 301 of Title 3 of the United States Code, and in order to provide for the performance of certain functions previously performed by agencies pursuant to their own authority, it is hereby ordered, effective July 30, 1979, as follows: 1-101. The functions vested in the President by Section 3 of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, as amended, hereinafter referred to as the Act, (50 U.S.C. 98b), are delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 1-102. The functions vested in the President by Section 6 of the Act (50 U.S.C. 98e) are delegated to the Administrator of General Services. 1-103. (a) The functions vested in the President by Section 8(a) of the Act (50 U.S.C. 988(a)) are delegated to the Secretary of the Interior. (b) The function vested in the President by Section 8(b) of the Act (50 U.S.C. 988(b) ) are delegated to the Secretary of Agriculture. 1-104. The functions vested in the President by Section 10 of the Act (50 U.S.C. 98h-1) are delegated to the Administrator of General Services. 1-105. The functions vested in the President by Section 11 of the Act (50 U.S.C. 98h 2) are delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture and the Administrator of General Services shall submit biannually a written report to the Director. The report shall detail their performance of functions under the Act and this Order. 1-106. Section 4-101 of Executive Order No. 12148 is revoked and the following new Sections 4-205 and 4-206 are added thereto: "4-205. Effective July 30, 1979, the functions vested in the President by Section 4(h) of the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act, as amended (15 U.S.C. 714b (h)), are hereby delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency." "4 206. Effective July 30, 1979, the functions vested in the President by Section 204(f) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (40 U.S.C. 485(f) ), are hereby delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.". JIMMY CARTER The White House, September 10, 1979. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 2:52 p.m., September 10, 1979]
Executive Order 12155 ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process
Executive Order 12155—Strategic and Critical Materials
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 2 min read (399 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
The functions vested in the President by Section 3 of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, as amended, hereinafter referred to as the Act, (50 U.S.C. 98b), are delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 1-102.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Branch Departments General Body of the People
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Jimmy Carter on September 10, 1979, this order concerns Strategic and Critical Materials. Effective July 30, 1979, as follows: 1-101. The functions vested in the President by Section 3 of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, as amended, hereinafter referred to as the Act, (50 U.S.C. 98b), are delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 1-102.
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
▪
The functions vested in the President by Section 3 of the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act, as amended, hereinafter referred to as the Act, (50 U.S.C. 98b), are delegated to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 1-102.
▪
The function vested in the President by Section 8(b) of the Act (50 U.S.C. 988(b) ) are delegated to the Secretary of Agriculture. 1-104.
▪
The Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture and the Administrator of General Services shall submit biannually a written report to the Director.
▪
The report shall detail their performance of functions under the Act and this Order. 1-106.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Executive Branch Departments
🏛️ General Body of the People
Policy Areas & Topics
🏛️
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight)
§
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
JM
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
Madisonian Stance: Vigilant / Cautionary
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: Defends Vigor & Dispatch
GM
George Mason
Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment
"The purse and the sword ought never to be in the same hands... nor the liberties of the citizen placed at the pleasure of a single magistrate." — Virginia Ratifying Convention (1788)
George Mason and the Anti-Federalists would sound a fierce warning. They feared that Article II would inevitably evolve into an elective monarchy. When an executive order impacts private rights, property, or civil liberties without individualized judicial process, Mason would see their darkest predictions verified.
Anti-Federalist Stance: High Bill of Rights Scrutiny
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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.
⚖️ Discretionary Twilight Zone
35 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8
Low Friction
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
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
Moderate Friction
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Directs internal executive branch machinery, agency workflows, and federal personnel.
Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment
Moderate Friction
Federalism & State Sovereignty
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
Low Friction
Due Process & Individual Rights
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
Moderate Friction
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
Benchmark: Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
⚖️
Audit Synthesis
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Weighted composite: Art. I (25%), Art. II (25%), Federalism (15%), Due Process (15%), Youngstown (20%).
ℹ️
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
399
2,406 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
10.5
High School
Text size:
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Referenced By Later Executive Orders (1)
Subsequent presidents who cited, amended, continued, or revoked this directive in later orders.
Ronald Reagan • 1983-05-02
Related Executive Orders
1 order cited directly in this text, plus related actions from this administration.
EO 12148 Partially revoked Jul 20, 1979
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 12148—Federal Emergency Management
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Transfer or Reassignment of Existing Functions. 1-101. All functions vested in the President that have been delegated or assigned to the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency, Department of Defense, are transferred or reassigned to the Director of the Federal Emergency Management…
Jimmy Carter College Level • 17m
EO 12156 Sep 10, 1979
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 12156—Federal Emergency Management Agency; Department of Energy
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
1-101. Section 5-211 of Executive Order No. 12148 of July 20, 1979, is corrected and amended to read: "Section 1-102 of Executive Order No. 12083, as amended by Executive Order No. 12121, is further amended by adding in alphabetical order "(z) The Director of the Federal…
Jimmy Carter College Level • 1m
EO 12157 Sep 14, 1979
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Fidelity (+0.29)
Executive Order 12157—President's Management Improvement Council
📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process
1-1. Establishment of the Council. 1-101. There is hereby established the President's Management Improvement Council. 1-102. The Council shall be Co-chaired by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management.
Jimmy Carter College Level • 2m
EO 12154 Amended Sep 4, 1979
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 12154—Executive Schedule
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
1-1. Executive Schedule Positions. 1-101. The following positions are placed in level IV of the Executive Schedule: (a) Senior Adviser to the Secretary, Department of State. (b) Deputy Under Secretary for International Labor Affairs, Department of Labor.
Jimmy Carter High School • 1m
EO 12158 Sep 18, 1979
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 12158—Presidential Scholars
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and statutes of the United States of America, Section 2 of Executive Order No. 11155 is hereby amended by adding thereto the following paragraph: "(5) In addition to the Presidential Scholars provided for in…
Jimmy Carter College Level • 1m
EO 12159 Sep 20, 1979
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 12159—Emergency Board To Investigate a Railway Labor Dispute
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
1-101. Establishment of Board. There is established a board of three members to be appointed by the President to investigate these disputes. No member of the board shall be pecuniarily or otherwise interested in any organization of railroad employees or any carrier. 1-102.
Jimmy Carter College Level • 2m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 12,155 (Sept. 10, 1979), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12155-strategic-and-critical-materials.
