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Executive Order 13088 Revoked 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Neutral (+0.06) 📜 Art. I §8: Delegated Tariff & Commerce Execution

Executive Order 13088—Blocking Property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro, and Prohibiting New Investment in the Republic of Serbia in Response to the Situation in Kosovo

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Tuesday, June 9, 1998
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5 min read (1,095 words)
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63 Fed. Reg. 32109

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 5 min read (1,095 words) • ● Revoked
🎯 Primary Mandate

Except to the extent provided in section 2 of this order, section 203(b) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)), and in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all property and interests in property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereinafter come within the possession or control of United States persons, including their overseas branches, are hereby blocked.

⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 Art. I §8: Delegated Tariff & Commerce Execution
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 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 William J. Clinton on June 9, 1998, this order concerns Blocking Property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro, and Prohibiting New Investment in the Republic of Serbia in Response to the Situation in Kosovo. Except to the extent provided in section 2 of this order, section 203(b) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)), and in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all property and interests in property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro that are in the United States…

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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Except to the extent provided in section 2 of this order, section 203(b) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)), and in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all property and interests in property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereinafter come within the possession or control of United States persons, including their overseas branches, are hereby blocked.

▪

Nothing in section 1 of this order shall prohibit financial transactions, including trade financing, by United States persons within the territory of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) if (a) conducted exclusively through the domestic banking system within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) in local currency (dinars), or (b) conducted using bank notes or barter.

▪

Except as otherwise provided in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all new investment by United States persons in the territory of the Republic of Serbia, and the approval or other facilitation by United States persons of other persons' new investment in the territory of the Republic of Serbia, are prohibited.

▪

Any transaction by a United States person that evades or avoids, or has the purpose of evading or avoiding, or attempts to violate, any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities

Policy Areas & Topics

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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)
§

"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
55 / 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

High Friction

Invokes broad unilateral or emergency executive authorities that test the constitutional boundary of the Take Care Clause.

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

High Friction

Scrutinized under the Bill of Rights for potential impact on private contracts, property rights, or procedural due process.

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
1,095
6,989 characters
Estimated Read Time
5 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
24.2
Post-Graduate Legal
Language Tone Score
+0.06
Constitutional Neutral
How is this scored?
Text size:

Official Archival Text

View Source Document

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United States of America, find that the actions and policies of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) and the Republic of Serbia with respect to Kosovo, by promoting ethnic conflict and human suffering, threaten to destabilize countries of the region and to disrupt progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina in implementing the Dayton peace agreement, and therefore constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, and hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat. I hereby order:

Section 1. #sec-1

(a) Except to the extent provided in section 2 of this order, section 203(b) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)), and in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all property and interests in property of the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereinafter come within the possession or control of United States persons, including their overseas branches, are hereby blocked. (b) The blocking of property and property interests in paragraph (a) of this section includes the prohibition of financial transactions with, including trade financing for, the Governments of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), the Republic of Serbia, and the Republic of Montenegro by United States persons.

Sec. 2. #sec-2

Nothing in section 1 of this order shall prohibit financial transactions, including trade financing, by United States persons within the territory of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) if (a) conducted exclusively through the domestic banking system within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) in local currency (dinars), or (b) conducted using bank notes or barter.

Sec. 3. #sec-3

Except as otherwise provided in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may hereafter be issued pursuant to this order, all new investment by United States persons in the territory of the Republic of Serbia, and the approval or other facilitation by United States persons of other persons' new investment in the territory of the Republic of Serbia, are prohibited.

Sec. 4. #sec-4

Any transaction by a United States person that evades or avoids, or has the purpose of evading or avoiding, or attempts to violate, any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

Sec. 5. #sec-5

For the purposes of this order: (a) The term "person" means an individual or entity; (b) The term "entity" means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, or other organization; (c) The term "new investment" means (i) the acquisition of debt or equity interests in, (ii) a commitment or contribution of funds or other assets to, or (iii) a loan or other extension of credit to, a public or private undertaking, entity, or project, including the Government of the Republic of Serbia, other than donations of funds for purely humanitarian purposes to charitable organizations; (d) The term "United States person" means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, juridical person organized under the laws of the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States; (e) The term "Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro)" means the government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), its agencies, instrumentalities, and controlled entities, including all financial institutions and state-owned and socially owned entities organized or located in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) as of June 9, 1998, any successors to such entities, and their respective subsidiaries and branches, wherever located, and any persons acting or purporting to act for or on behalf of any of the foregoing; (f) The term "Government of the Republic of Serbia" means the government of the Republic of Serbia, including any subdivisions thereof or local governments therein, its agencies, instrumentalities, and controlled entities, including all financial institutions and state-owned and socially owned entities organized or located in the Republic of Serbia as of June 9, 1998, any successors to such entities, and their respective subsidiaries and branches, wherever located, and any persons acting or purporting to act for or on behalf of any of the foregoing; (g) The term "Government of the Republic of Montenegro" means the government of the Republic of Montenegro, including any subdivisions thereof or local governments therein, its agencies, instrumentalities, and controlled entities, including all financial institutions and state-owned and socially owned entities organized or located in the Republic of Montenegro as of June 9, 1998, any successors to such entities, and their respective subsidiaries and branches, wherever located, and any persons acting or purporting to act for or on behalf of any of the foregoing.

Sec. 6. #sec-6

The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ all powers granted to me by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary of the Treasury may redelegate any of these functions to other officers and agencies of the United States Government, all agencies of which are hereby directed to take all appropriate measures within their authority to carry out the provisions of this order, including suspension or termination of licenses or other authorizations in effect as of the effective date of this order.

Sec. 7. #sec-7

The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall give special consideration to the circumstances of the Government of the Republic of Montenegro and persons located in and organized under the laws of the Republic of Montenegro in the implementation of this order.

Sec. 8. #sec-8

Nothing contained in this order shall confer any substantive or procedural right or privilege on any person or organization, enforceable against the United States, its agencies or its officers.

Sec. 9. #sec-9

(a) This order is effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on June 10, 1998. (b) This order shall be transmitted to the Congress and published in the Federal Register. William J. Clinton The White House, June 9, 1998. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., June 11, 1998]

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Referenced By Later Executive Orders (3)

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

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Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 13,088, 63 Fed. Reg. 32,109 (June 9, 1998).