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Executive Orders Historical Archive
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Executive Order 13538 Amended 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Fidelity (+0.52) 📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process

Executive Order 13538—Establishing the President's Management Advisory Board

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Monday, April 19, 2010
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3 min read (641 words)
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75 Fed. Reg. 20895

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 3 min read (641 words) • ● Amended
🎯 Primary Mandate

The PMAB shall provide the President and the President's Management Council (PMC) advice and recommendations on effective strategies for the implementation of best business practices on matters related to Federal Government management and operation, with a particular focus on productivity, the application of technology, and customer service.

⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 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 Barack Obama on April 19, 2010, this order concerns Establishing the President's Management Advisory Board. There is established within the General Services Administration (GSA) the President's Management Advisory Board (PMAB). Sec. 2. Mission . (a) The PMAB shall provide the President and the President's Management Council (PMC) advice and recommendations on effective strategies for the implementation of best business practices on matters related to Federal Government management and operation, with a particular focus on…

Constitutional Assessment: Evaluated against the Fifth Amendment, this action touches upon property or economic rights. An early statesman would insist upon strict adherence to due process of law and the constitutional guarantee that private holdings shall not be encumbered or taken for public purposes without just compensation and lawful process.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

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Mission

The PMAB shall provide the President and the President's Management Council (PMC) advice and recommendations on effective strategies for the implementation of best business practices on matters related to Federal Government management and operation, with a particular focus on productivity, the application of technology, and customer service.

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Membership

The PMAB shall consist of not more than 18 members, one of whom shall be the Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget (DDM).

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Administration

The General Services Administration shall provide funding and administrative support for the PMAB to the extent permitted by law and within existing appropriations.

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Termination

The PMAB shall terminate 2 years after the date of this order unless extended by the President.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners
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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 purse and the sword ought never to be in the same hands... nor the liberties of the citizen placed at the pleasure of a single magistrate." — Virginia Ratifying Convention (1788)

George Mason and the Anti-Federalists would sound a fierce warning. They feared that Article II would inevitably evolve into an elective monarchy. When an executive order impacts private rights, property, or civil liberties without individualized judicial process, Mason would see their darkest predictions verified.

Anti-Federalist Stance: High Bill of Rights Scrutiny
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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
40 / 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

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
641
4,031 characters
Estimated Read Time
3 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
16
Post-Graduate Legal
Language Tone Score
+0.52
Constitutional Fidelity
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, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. #sec-1

Establishment . There is established within the General Services Administration (GSA) the President's Management Advisory Board (PMAB).

Sec. 2. #sec-2

Mission . (a) The PMAB shall provide the President and the President's Management Council (PMC) advice and recommendations on effective strategies for the implementation of best business practices on matters related to Federal Government management and operation, with a particular focus on productivity, the application of technology, and customer service. (b) The functions of the PMAB shall be advisory only.

Sec. 3. #sec-3

Membership . (a) The PMAB shall consist of not more than 18 members, one of whom shall be the Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget (DDM). The remaining 17 members shall be appointed by the President from among distinguished citizens from outside the Federal Government who are qualified on the basis of a proven record of sound judgment in leading or governing large, complex, or innovative private sector corporations or entities and a wealth of top-level business experience in the areas of executive management, audit and finance, human resources and compensation, customer service, streamlining operations, and technology. Each of these 17 members may serve as a representative of his or her industry, trade group, public interest group, or other organization or group. The composition of the PMAB shall reflect the views of diverse stakeholders. (b) The DDM shall serve as Chair of the PMAB. The Chair shall convene and preside at meetings of the PMAB, determine its agenda, and direct its work. (c) Members appointed by the President shall serve for a term of 2 years and shall be eligible for reappointment. Members may continue to serve after the expiration of their terms until the appointment of a successor.

Sec. 4. #sec-4

Administration . (a) The General Services Administration shall provide funding and administrative support for the PMAB to the extent permitted by law and within existing appropriations. (b) All executive departments, agencies, and offices shall provide information and assistance to the PMAB as the Chair may request for purposes of carrying out the PMAB's functions, to the extent permitted by law. (c) The PMAB shall have a staff headed by an Executive Director, who shall be a full-time or permanent part-time Federal employee appointed by the Chair. The Executive Director shall serve as the Designated Federal Officer in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. App.)(FACA). (d) Members of the PMAB shall serve without compensation, but shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by law for persons serving intermittently in Government service (5 U.S.C. 5701-5707), consistent with the availability of funds.

Sec. 5. #sec-5

Termination . The PMAB shall terminate 2 years after the date of this order unless extended by the President.

Sec. 6. #sec-6

General Provisions . (a) Insofar as the FACA may apply to the PMAB, any functions of the President under that Act, except that of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the Administrator of General Services in accordance with the guidelines that have been issued by the Administrator of General Services. (b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect: (i) authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the head thereof; or (ii) functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. (c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person. BARACK OBAMA The White House, April 19, 2010.

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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. 13,538, 75 Fed. Reg. 20,895 (Apr. 19, 2010).