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Executive Order 13371 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Fidelity (+0.23) 📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law

Executive Order 13371—Amendments to Executive Order 13285, Relating to the Presidents Council on Service and Civic Participation

George W. Bush George W. Bush
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Thursday, January 27, 2005
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2 min read (405 words)
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70 Fed. Reg. 5041

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 2 min read (405 words) • ● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate

Executive Order 13285 of January 29, 2003, 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
Private Citizens & Property Owners
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 January 27, 2005, this order concerns Amendments to Executive Order 13285, Relating to the Presidents Council on Service and Civic Participation. Executive Order 13285 of January 29, 2003, is amended as follows: Section 1. (a) Sections 2(a) and 2(b) of Executive Order 13285 are revised to read as follows: "(a) The mission and functions of the Council shall be to: (i) promote volunteer service and civic participation in American society; (ii) encourage the recognition of outstanding volunteer service through the presentation of the President's Volunteer…

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

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Executive Order 13285 of January 29, 2003, is amended as follows: Section 1.

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Sections 2(a) and 2(b) of Executive Order 13285 are revised to read as follows: "(a) The mission and functions of the Council shall be to: (i) promote volunteer service and civic participation in American society; (ii) encourage the recognition of outstanding volunteer service through the presentation of the President's Volunteer Service Award by Council members and Certifying Organizations, thereby encouraging more such activity; (iii) promote the efforts and needs of local non-profits and volunteer organizations, including volunteer centers; (iv) promote greater public access to information about existing volunteer opportunities, including via the Internet; (v) assist with the promotion of Federally administered volunteer programs and…

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In carrying out its mission, the Council shall: (i) encourage broad participation in the President's Volunteer Service Award program by qualified individuals and groups, especially students in primary schools, secondary schools, and institutions of higher learning; (ii) exchange information and ideas with interested individuals and organizations on ways to expand and improve volunteer service and civic participation; (iii) advise the Chief Executive Officer of the CNCS on broad dissemination, especially among schools and youth organizations, of information regarding recommended practices for the promotion of volunteer service and civic participation, and other relevant educational and promotional materials; (iv) monitor and advise the…

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Section 4(b) of Executive Order 13285 is revised to read as follows: "(b) Unless further extended by the President, this order shall expire on January 29, 2007."

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners

Policy Areas & Topics

🏷️ Education
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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

"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
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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
32 / 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

Moderate Friction

Applies regulatory or compliance standards to private contractors or commercial entities.

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
405
2,729 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
29.6
Post-Graduate Legal
Language Tone Score
+0.23
Constitutional Fidelity
How is this scored?
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Official Archival Text

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📑Sections Outline (2 sections)
Sec. 1Sec. 2

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to modify the mission and functions of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation (Council) and to extend the Council, it is hereby ordered that Executive Order 13285 of January 29, 2003, is amended as follows:

Section 1. #sec-1

(a) Sections 2(a) and 2(b) of Executive Order 13285 are revised to read as follows: "(a) The mission and functions of the Council shall be to: (i) promote volunteer service and civic participation in American society; (ii) encourage the recognition of outstanding volunteer service through the presentation of the President's Volunteer Service Award by Council members and Certifying Organizations, thereby encouraging more such activity; (iii) promote the efforts and needs of local non-profits and volunteer organizations, including volunteer centers; (iv) promote greater public access to information about existing volunteer opportunities, including via the Internet; (v) assist with the promotion of Federally administered volunteer programs and the link that they have to increasing and strengthening community volunteer service; and (vi) promote increased and sustained private sector sponsorship of and engagement in volunteer service. (b) In carrying out its mission, the Council shall: (i) encourage broad participation in the President's Volunteer Service Award program by qualified individuals and groups, especially students in primary schools, secondary schools, and institutions of higher learning; (ii) exchange information and ideas with interested individuals and organizations on ways to expand and improve volunteer service and civic participation; (iii) advise the Chief Executive Officer of the CNCS on broad dissemination, especially among schools and youth organizations, of information regarding recommended practices for the promotion of volunteer service and civic participation, and other relevant educational and promotional materials; (iv) monitor and advise the Chief Executive Officer of the CNCS on the need for the enhancement of materials disseminated pursuant to subsection 2(b)(iii) of this order; and (v) make recommendations from time to time to the President, through the Director of the USA Freedom Corps, on ways to encourage greater levels of volunteer service and civic participation by individuals, schools, and organizations."

Sec. 2. #sec-2

Section 4(b) of Executive Order 13285 is revised to read as follows: "(b) Unless further extended by the President, this order shall expire on January 29, 2007." GEORGE W. BUSH The White House, January 27, 2005. [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 9:46 a.m., January 28, 2005]

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Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 13,371, 70 Fed. Reg. 5041 (Jan. 27, 2005).