Executive Order 12436 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 12436—Payment of Certain Benefits to Survivors of Persons Who Died in or as a Result of Military Service

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Friday, July 29, 1983

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2 min read (313 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 1983-07-29, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Payment of Certain Benefits to Survivors of Persons Who Died in or as a Result of Military Service." 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

▪ The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall provide to the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs such information and such technical assistance as the Administrator may reasonably require to discharge his responsibilities under Section 156.

▪ The Administrator of Veterans' Affairs shall reimburse the Department of Health and Human Services for all expenses it incurs in providing such information and technical assistance to the Veterans' Administration.

▪ Such expenses shall be paid from the Veterans' Administration account described in Section 3 of this Order.

▪ Such transfers shall, to the extent feasible, be made in advance of the payment of benefits and expenses by the Veterans' Administration.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners

Total Words

313

1,960 characters

Estimated Read Time

2 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

14.4

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

+0.02

Framers' Alignment index

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Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 12436, Ronald Reagan (Jul 29, 1983). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12436-payment-certain-benefits-survivors-persons-who-died-or-result.

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 of America, including Section 156 of Public Law 97-377 (96 Stat. 1920; 42 U.S.C. 402 note), in order to provide certain benefits to the surviving spouses and children of certain persons who died in or as a result of military service, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. The Administrator of Veterans' Affairs is designated to administer the provisions of Section 156 of Public Law 97377. Sec. 2. The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall provide to the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs such information and such technical assistance as the Administrator may reasonably require to discharge his responsibilities under Section 156. The Administrator of Veterans' Affairs shall reimburse the Department of Health and Human Services for all expenses it incurs in providing such information and technical assistance to the Veterans' Administration. Such expenses shall be paid from the Veterans' Administration account described in Section 3 of this Order. Sec. 3. During fiscal year 1983 and each succeeding fiscal year, the Secretary of Defense shall transfer, from time to time, from the "Retired Pay, Defense" account of the Department of Defense to an account established in the Veterans' Administration, such amounts as the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs determines to be necessary to pay the benefits authorized by Section 156 during fiscal year 1983 and each succeeding fiscal year, and the expenses incurred by the Veterans' Administration in paying such benefits during fiscal year 1983 and each succeeding fiscal year. Such transfers shall, to the extent feasible, be made in advance of the payment of benefits and expenses by the Veterans' Administration. Sec. 4. This Order shall be effective as of January 1, 1983. RONALD REAGAN The White House, July 29, 1983. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:07 a. m., August 1, 1983]