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Executive Order 12319 Constitutional Fidelity (+0.29)

Executive Order 12319—River Basin Commissions

Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan
•
Wednesday, September 9, 1981
•
2 min read (450 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 Ronald Reagan on 1981-09-09, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "River Basin Commissions." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.

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

▪ By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States, in order to ensure the orderly termination of the six river basin commissions established pursuant to the Water Resources Planning Act (42 U.S.C.
▪ 1962b-2(a)), the following river basin commissions shall terminate on the date indicated: (a) Pacific Northwest River Basins Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981.
▪ All Federal agencies shall cooperate with the commissions and the member States to achieve an orderly close out of commission activities and, if the member States so elect, to carry out an orderly transition of appropriate commission activities to the member States.
▪ The terms and conditions for transfer of assets under this Section shall be subject to the approval of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, or such Federal agency as he designates, before the transfer is effective.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities
Total Words
450
2,911 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
11.8
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.29
Framers' Alignment index
📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 12319, Ronald Reagan (Sep 9, 1981). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12319-river-basin-commissions.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and laws of the United States, in order to ensure the orderly termination of the six river basin commissions established pursuant to the Water Resources Planning Act (42 U.S.C. 1962 et seq.), it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. In accord with the decision of the Water Resources Council pursuant to Section 203(a) of the Water Resources Planning Act (42 U.S.C. 1962b-2(a)), the following river basin commissions shall terminate on the date indicated: (a) Pacific Northwest River Basins Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981. (b) Great Lakes Basin Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981. (c) Ohio River Basin Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981. (d) New England River Basins Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981. (e) Missouri River Basin Commission, terminated on September 30, 1981. (f) Upper Mississippi River Basin Commission, terminated on December 31, 1981. Sec. 2. All Federal agencies shall cooperate with the commissions and the member States to achieve an orderly close out of commission activities and, if the member States so elect, to carry out an orderly transition of appropriate commission activities to the member States. Sec. 3. To the extent permitted by law, the assets of the commissions which the Federal Government might otherwise be entitled to claim are to be transferred to the member States of the commissions, or such entities as the States acting through their representatives on the commissions may designate, to be used for such water and related land resources planning purposes as the States may decide among themselves. The terms and conditions for transfer of assets under this Section shall be subject to the approval of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, or such Federal agency as he designates, before the transfer is effective. Sec. 4. Federal agency members of river basin commissions are directed to continue coordination and cooperation in future State and inter-State basin planning arrangements. Sec. 5. (a) Effective October 1, 1981, the following Executive Orders are revoked: (1) Executive Order No. 11331, as amended, which established the Pacific Northwest River Basins Commission. (2) Executive Order No. 11345, as amended, which established the Great Lakes Basin Commission. (3) Executive Order No. 11371, as amended, which established the New England River Basins Commission. (4) Executive Order No. 11578, as amended, which established the Ohio River Basin Commission. (5) Executive Order No. 11658, as amended, which established the Missouri River Basin Commission. (b) Effective January 1, 1982, Executive Order No. 11659, as amended, which established the Upper Mississippi River Basin Commission, is revoked. RONALD REAGAN The White House, September 9, 1981. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 2:30 p.m., September 10, 1981]