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Executive Order 12826 Superseded 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Fidelity (+0.23) 📜 Art. I §8: Delegated Tariff & Commerce Execution

Executive Order 12826—Adjustment of Certain Rates of Pay and Allowances

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Wednesday, December 30, 1992
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4 min read (864 words)

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 4 min read (864 words) • ● Superseded
🎯 Primary Mandate

Pursuant to section 302 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, as incorporated in section 529 of Public Law 101--509, employees under statutory pay systems covered under section 1 of this order, and members of the United States Park Police, who are assigned to a duty station located in one of the geographical areas listed in Schedule 9 shall be entitled, except as may be provided under subsection (b) of this section, to receive an interim geographic adjustment at the rate shown on Schedule 9, which schedule is attached hereto and made a part hereof.

⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 Art. I §8: Delegated Tariff & Commerce Execution
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Armed Forces & Military Establishments Sovereign State Governments & Localities Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants Private Citizens & Property Owners

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.

Signed by President George Bush on December 30, 1992, this order concerns Adjustment of Certain Rates of Pay and Allowances. The rates of basic pay or salaries of the statutory pay systems (as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5302(1), as amended by section 2(25) of Public Law 102--378) are set forth on the schedules attached hereto and made a part hereof: (a) The General Schedule (5 U.S.C. 5332(a)) at Schedule 1; (b) The Foreign Service Schedule (22 U.S.C. 3963) at Schedule 2; and (c) The schedules for the Veterans Health Administration of the…

Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

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Interim geographic adjustments

Pursuant to section 302 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, as incorporated in section 529 of Public Law 101--509, employees under statutory pay systems covered under section 1 of this order, and members of the United States Park Police, who are assigned to a duty station located in one of the geographical areas listed in Schedule 9 shall be entitled, except as may be provided under subsection (b) of this section, to receive an interim geographic adjustment at the rate shown on Schedule 9, which schedule is attached hereto and made a part hereof.

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The Secretary of State shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to employees under the Foreign Service Schedule, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

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The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to employees under the schedules for the Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

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The Secretary of the Interior shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to members of the United States Park Police, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

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
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The Framers' Constitutional Council

1787 Prism

Evaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.

🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority)
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"When the President acts pursuant to an express or implied authorization of Congress, his authority is at its maximum, for it includes all that he possesses in his own right plus all that Congress can delegate."

— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
JM

James Madison

Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy

"The constitutional magistracy was designed not to invent policy, but to be the faithful instrument of the laws passed by the people's representatives." — Speech in the First Congress (1789)

Madison would approve the structural posture of this order. The President acts strictly in subordination to statutory authority granted under Article II, Section 3 ("take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed"). The checks and balances hold firm because the policy origin remains with the legislature.

Madisonian Stance: Concurring (Statutory)
AH

Alexander Hamilton

The Energetic Executive & Unified Command

"The direction of war implies the direction of the common strength; and the power of directing and employing the common strength must be under the direction of the single hand of the Executive." — Federalist No. 74 (1788)

Hamilton would forcefully champion executive discretion here. For foreign entanglements, commerce defense, and national security, deliberative assemblies are too slow and faction-ridden. A unified, energetic Executive exercising swift command is precisely what the Philadelphia Convention intended for national preservation.

Hamiltonian Stance: Supportive of Execution
GM

George Mason

Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment

"The president will be surrounded by flatterers and sycophants... and the great powers of the executive will gradually absorb the liberties of the people." — Cato IV (Anti-Federalist, 1787)

The Anti-Federalist prism advises continuous democratic vigilance. Even routine administrative directives aggregate centralized federal power away from town halls and state assemblies toward a distant executive apparatus.

Anti-Federalist Stance: Eternal Vigilance Required
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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
36 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8

Legislative Encroachment & Purse

Moderate Friction

Administers commerce or fiscal programs requiring ongoing statutory delegation and legislative oversight.

Benchmark: Power of the purse, taxes/tariffs, and rule of law reserved to Congress.
Dimension 2 • Art. II, §1 & §3

Executive Scope & Faithfulness

Moderate Friction

Directs internal executive branch machinery, agency workflows, and federal personnel.

Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment

Federalism & State Sovereignty

Moderate Friction

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

Due Process & Individual Rights

Low Friction

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

Youngstown Jacksonian Tier

Low Friction

The President operates strictly as the constitutional Chief Executive, carrying out policy established by Congress with strong statutory backing.

Benchmark: Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
⚖️ 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%).
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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
864
5,408 characters
Estimated Read Time
4 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
14.5
College Level
Language Tone Score
+0.23
Constitutional Fidelity
How is this scored?
Text size:

Official Archival Text

View Source Document

The statutory pay system salary or basic pay rates are amended on the General Schedule, Foreign Service Schedule and the Veterans Health Administration schedule. Executive salaries are also affected, including those of judges, justices, Congressional members and the vice president. Those in the uniformed services will receive geographic adjustments or different rates of pay dependent upon the economic situation in which they are stationed. This new schedule goes into effect Jan 1, 1993. By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 704 of Public Law 101--194; section 302 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, as incorporated in section 529 of Public Law 101--509; section 633 of Public Law 101--509; section 301(a) of Public Law 102--40; section 304 of Public Law 102--395; section 601 of Public Law 102--484; section 31 of title 2, United States Code; section 104 of title 3, United States Code; sections 5303, 5318, and 5382 of title 5, United States Code; and section 461(a) of title 28, United States Code, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. #sec-1

Statutory pay systems. The rates of basic pay or salaries of the statutory pay systems (as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5302(1), as amended by section 2(25) of Public Law 102--378) are set forth on the schedules attached hereto and made a part hereof: (a) The General Schedule (5 U.S.C. 5332(a)) at Schedule 1; (b) The Foreign Service Schedule (22 U.S.C. 3963) at Schedule 2; and (c) The schedules for the Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs (38 U.S.C. 7306, 7404; section 301(a) of Public Law 102--40) at Schedule 3.

Sec. 2. #sec-2

Senior Executive Service. Pursuant to section 5382 of title 5, United States Code, the rates of basic pay for members of the Senior Executive Service are set forth on Schedule 4 attached hereto and made a part hereof.

Sec. 3. #sec-3

Executive salaries. The rates of pay or salaries for the following offices and positions are set forth on the schedules attached hereto and made a part hereof: (a) The Executive Schedule (5 U.S.C. 5312--5316, 5318) at Schedule 5; (b) The Vice President (3 U.S.C. 104) and the Congress (2 U.S.C. 31) at Schedule 6; and (c) Justices and Judges (28 U.S.C. 5, 44(d), 135, 252, and 461(a); section 304 of Public Law 102--395) at Schedule 7.

Sec. 4. #sec-4

Uniformed services. Pursuant to section 601 of Public Law 102--484, the rates of monthly basic pay (37 U.S.C. 203(a)), the rates of basic allowances for subsistence (37 U.S.C. 402), and the rates of basic allowances for quarters (37 U.S.C. 403(a)) for members of the uniformed services are set forth at Schedule 8 attached hereto and made a part hereof.

Sec. 5. #sec-5

Interim geographic adjustments. (a) Pursuant to section 302 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, as incorporated in section 529 of Public Law 101--509, employees under statutory pay systems covered under section 1 of this order, and members of the United States Park Police, who are assigned to a duty station located in one of the geographical areas listed in Schedule 9 shall be entitled, except as may be provided under subsection (b) of this section, to receive an interim geographic adjustment at the rate shown on Schedule 9, which schedule is attached hereto and made a part hereof. (b)(1) The Office of Personnel Management shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to General Schedule employees, including the determination of what, if any, geographic adjustment shall be payable in the case of employees receiving special pay rates. (2) The Secretary of State shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to employees under the Foreign Service Schedule, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection. (3) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to employees under the schedules for the Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection. (4) The Secretary of the Interior shall prescribe regulations governing the application of interim geographic adjustments to members of the United States Park Police, consistent with the regulations and determinations prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection. (c) The Office of Personnel Management is hereby designated and empowered to exercise the authority of the President under section 302(c)(1)(D) of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, as incorporated in section 529 of Public Law 101--509, to extend the application of interim geographic adjustments shown on Schedule 9, upon the request of an agency head, to employees who would not otherwise be covered.

Sec. 6. #sec-6

Effective dates. The rates of monthly basic pay and allowances for subsistence and quarters for members of the uniformed services provided for at Schedule 8 are effective on January 1, 1993. The other schedules provided for herein are effective on the first day of the first applicable pay period beginning on or after January 1, 1993.

Sec. 7. #sec-7

Executive Order No. 12786 of December 26, 1991, is superseded. George Bush The White House, December 30, 1992.

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Referenced By Later Executive Orders (2)

Subsequent presidents who cited, amended, continued, or revoked this directive in later orders.

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Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 12,826 (Dec. 30, 1992), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12826-adjustment-certain-rates-pay-and-allowances.