★
Executive Orders Historical Archive
🎲
Cite
Executive Order 13258 Revoked 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Fidelity (+0.23) 📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law

Executive Order 13258—Amending Executive Order 12866 on Regulatory Planning and Review

George W. Bush George W. Bush
•
Tuesday, February 26, 2002
•
3 min read (656 words)
•
67 Fed. Reg. 9385

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 3 min read (656 words) • ● Revoked
🎯 Primary Mandate

Executive Order 12866, of September 30, 1993, is amended as follows: Section 1.

View all 4 directives ↓
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law
Framers' constitutional debate ↓
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Branch Departments General Body of the People
Inspect unabridged text ↓

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 W. Bush on February 26, 2002, this order concerns Amending Executive Order 12866 on Regulatory Planning and Review. Executive Order 12866, of September 30, 1993, is amended as follows: Section 1. Section (2)(b) is amended by striking ", the Vice President, and other regulatory policy advisors" and inserting in lieu thereof "and regulatory policy advisors". Sec. 2.

Constitutional Assessment: An early statesman would view this measure favorably under Article II, Section 3 (the Take Care Clause). The President operates strictly within the ambit of executing established laws and supervising departmental subordinates, respecting the supremacy of the legislative branch without fabricating novel statutory obligations.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪

Executive Order 12866, of September 30, 1993, is amended as follows: Section 1.

▪

Section (2)(b) is amended by striking ", the Vice President, and other regulatory policy advisors" and inserting in lieu thereof "and regulatory policy advisors".

▪

Section (2)(c) is amended by: (a) striking in the heading the words "The Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "Assistance"; (b) striking the sentence that begins "The Vice President is"; (c) striking "In fulfilling their responsibilities" and inserting in lieu thereof "In fulfilling his responsibilities"; and (d) striking "and the Vice President" both times it appears.

▪

Section 3(a) is amended by: (a) striking "and Vice President"; (b) striking "the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy"; (c) striking "the Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Deputy Assistant to the President and Director for Intergovernmental Affairs"; (d) striking "the Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Office of Environmental Policy" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and Director of the Office of Environmental Quality"; and (e) striking "and (12)" and inserting in lieu thereof "(12) the…

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Executive Branch Departments 🏛️ General Body of the People

Policy Areas & Topics

🏷️ Technology & Cybersecurity
🏛️

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

"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: 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
📐

Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions

An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.

🛡️ High Constitutional Concordance
28 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8

Legislative Encroachment & Purse

Low Friction

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

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 in close harmony with statutory authority and standard Article II supervisory execution.

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
656
4,173 characters
Estimated Read Time
3 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
18.7
Post-Graduate Legal
Language Tone Score
+0.23
Constitutional Fidelity
How is this scored?
Text size:

Official Archival Text

View Source Document
📑Sections Outline (14 sections)
Sec. 1Sec. 2Sec. 3Sec. 4Sec. 5Sec. 6Sec. 7Sec. 8Sec. 9Sec. 10Sec. 11Sec. 12Sec. 13Sec. 14

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered that Executive Order 12866, of September 30, 1993, is amended as follows:

Section 1. #sec-1

Section (2)(b) is amended by striking ", the Vice President, and other regulatory policy advisors" and inserting in lieu thereof "and regulatory policy advisors".

Sec. 2. #sec-2

Section (2)(c) is amended by: (a) striking in the heading the words "The Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "Assistance"; (b) striking the sentence that begins "The Vice President is"; (c) striking "In fulfilling their responsibilities" and inserting in lieu thereof "In fulfilling his responsibilities"; and (d) striking "and the Vice President" both times it appears.

Sec. 3. #sec-3

Section 3(a) is amended by: (a) striking "and Vice President"; (b) striking "the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy"; (c) striking "the Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Deputy Assistant to the President and Director for Intergovernmental Affairs"; (d) striking "the Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Office of Environmental Policy" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and Director of the Office of Environmental Quality"; and (e) striking "and (12)" and inserting in lieu thereof "(12) the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security; and (13)".

Sec. 4. #sec-4

Section 4(a) is amended by striking "the Vice President shall convene" and inserting in lieu thereof "the Director shall convene".

Sec. 5. #sec-5

Section 4(c)(3) is amended by striking ", the Advisors, and the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "and the Advisors".

Sec. 6. #sec-6

Section 4(c)(4) is amended by striking ", the Advisors, and the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "and the Advisors".

Sec. 7. #sec-7

Section 4(c)(5) is amended by striking ", the Advisors, and the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "and the Advisors".

Sec. 8. #sec-8

Section 4(c)(6) is amended by striking "Vice President, with the Advisors' assistance," and inserting in lieu thereof "Director".

Sec. 9. #sec-9

Section 4(d) is amended by: (a) striking ", the Advisors, and the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "and the Advisors"; and (b) striking "periodically advise the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "periodically advise the Director".

Sec. 10. #sec-10

Section 5(c) is amended by striking "Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "Director".

Sec. 11. #sec-11

Section 6(b)(4)(C)(i) is amended by striking "Vice Presidential and".

Sec. 12. #sec-12

Section 7 is amended by: (a) striking "resolved by the President, or by the Vice President acting at the request of the President" and inserting in lieu thereof "resolved by the President, with the assistance of the Chief of Staff to the President ("Chief of Staff")"; (b) striking "Vice Presidential and Presidential consideration" and inserting in lieu thereof "Presidential consideration"; (c) striking "recommendations developed by the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "recommendations developed by the Chief of Staff"; (d) striking "Vice Presidential and Presidential review period" and inserting in lieu thereof "Presidential review period"; (e) striking "or to the staff of the Vice President" and inserting in lieu thereof "or to the staff of the Chief of Staff"; (f) striking "the President, or the Vice President acting at the request of the President, shall notify" and insert in lieu thereof "the President, or the Chief of Staff acting at the request of the President, shall notify".

Sec. 13. #sec-13

Section 7 is also amended in the first paragraph by inserting the designation "(a)" after the words "Resolution of Conflicts.", and by designating the following three paragraphs as "(b)", "(c)", and "(d)" in order.

Sec. 14. #sec-14

Section 8 is amended by striking "Vice President" both times it appears and inserting in lieu thereof "Director". George W. Bush

THE WHITE HOUSE, #signature

February 26, 2002.

🏛️Official NARA Filing:FR Doc. 02–5069 Filed 2–27–02; 12:11 pm
🔗

Referenced By Later Executive Orders (1)

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

References Executive Order 13497—Revocation of Certain Executive Orders Concerning Regulatory Planning and Review
Barack Obama • 2009-01-30
📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 13,258, 67 Fed. Reg. 9385 (Feb. 26, 2002).