For the purpose of securing greater uniformity in the form and style and for the better safeguarding of the texts of Executive orders and proclamations, Executive Order No. 5220 of November 8, 1929, entitled "Uniform Style and Safeguarding of Proclamations and Executive Orders," is hereby rescinded and superseded by the following regulations. 1. The draft Executive orders and proclamations shall be prepared as follows: (a) Punctuation, capitalization, orthography, and other matters of style shall conform to the most recent edition of the "Style Manual of the Government Printing Office." (b) The spelling of geographic names shall conform to the most recent decisions of the United States Geographic Board (see Executive Orders No. 27-A of September 4, 1890, and No. 399 of January 23, 1906). (c) Descriptions of tracts of lands shall conform, so far as practicable, with the most recent edition of the "Specifications for Descriptions of Tracts of Land for Use in Executive Orders and Proclamations" prepared by the Board of Surveys and Maps of the Federal Government. (d) A suitable title shall be provided. (e) The typewritten drafts shall be double-spaced, on paper 8 by 12)2 inches, and shall have a left-hand margin of 2 inches. 2. The draft Executive orders and proclamations shall be forwarded in quadruplicate to the Department of State. That department shall review them and, upon its being ascertained that they conform with the above specifications, shall transmit the original and one additional copy to the President. 3. The Department of State shall have custody of the signed originals of all Executive orders and proclamations and shall supervise their publication. HERBERT HOOVER The White House, June 24, 1931.
Executive Order 5658 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
Executive Order 5658—Form, Style, and Safeguarding of Executive Orders and Proclamations
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 1 min read (274 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
For the purpose of securing greater uniformity in the form and style and for the better safeguarding of the texts of Executive orders and proclamations, Executive Order No. 5220 of November 8, 1929, entitled "Uniform Style and Safeguarding of Proclamations and Executive Orders," is hereby rescinded and superseded by the following regulations. 1.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Sovereign State Governments & Localities Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Herbert Hoover on June 24, 1931, this order concerns Form, Style, and Safeguarding of Executive Orders and Proclamations. For the purpose of securing greater uniformity in the form and style and for the better safeguarding of the texts of Executive orders and proclamations, Executive Order No. 5220 of November 8, 1929, entitled "Uniform Style and Safeguarding of Proclamations and Executive Orders," is hereby rescinded and superseded by the following regulations. 1.
Constitutional Assessment: Reviewed under the Tenth Amendment and the principle of dual federalism, this order touches upon domains traditionally reserved to the sovereign States. The Framers would caution against any attempt to commandeer state officers or displace local police powers through federal executive fiat.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
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For the purpose of securing greater uniformity in the form and style and for the better safeguarding of the texts of Executive orders and proclamations, Executive Order No. 5220 of November 8, 1929, entitled "Uniform Style and Safeguarding of Proclamations and Executive Orders," is hereby rescinded and superseded by the following regulations. 1.
▪
The draft Executive orders and proclamations shall be prepared as follows: (a) Punctuation, capitalization, orthography, and other matters of style shall conform to the most recent edition of the "Style Manual of the Government Printing Office." (b) The spelling of geographic names shall conform to the most recent decisions of the United States Geographic Board (see Executive Orders No. 27-A of September 4, 1890, and No. 399 of January 23, 1906).
▪
Descriptions of tracts of lands shall conform, so far as practicable, with the most recent edition of the "Specifications for Descriptions of Tracts of Land for Use in Executive Orders and Proclamations" prepared by the Board of Surveys and Maps of the Federal Government.
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A suitable title shall be provided.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities
🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
Policy Areas & Topics
🏛️
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating 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 powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." — 10th Amendment to the US Constitution (1791)
Mason would scrutinize whether this federal directive intrudes into police powers, land stewardship, or municipal domains historically reserved to local citizens. The Anti-Federalist demand is that federal administration must never supplant state self-governance.
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
23 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8
Low Friction
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
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
Low Friction
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment
Moderate Friction
Federalism & State Sovereignty
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
Low Friction
Due Process & Individual Rights
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
Low Friction
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
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
274
1,735 characters
Estimated Read Time
1 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
13.1
College Level
Text size:
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Referenced By Later Executive Orders (1)
Subsequent presidents who cited, amended, continued, or revoked this directive in later orders.
Franklin D. Roosevelt • 1933-08-10
Related Executive Orders
1 order cited directly in this text, plus related actions from this administration.
EO 5220 Nov 8, 1929
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5220—Uniform Style and Safeguarding of Proclamations and Executive Orders
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
For the purpose of securing uniformity of style and form and for the better safeguarding of the texts of Proclamations and Executive Orders it is directed that: 1.
Herbert Hoover College Level • 1m
EO 5657 Jun 24, 1931
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5657—Amending Schedule A of the Civil-Service Rules
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
Schedule A of the civil-service rules, Subdivision II—State Department, paragraph 2, is hereby amended to read: "Assistants to the Legal Adviser"
Herbert Hoover College Level • 1m
EO 5659 Jun 25, 1931
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5659—Authorizing the Appointment of Mrs. Florence R. Hopkins
📜 Art. I §8: Delegated Tariff & Commerce Execution
Mrs. Florence R. Hopkins may be appointed to a suitable position in the Treasury Department without compliance with the civil-service rules.
Herbert Hoover High School • 1m
EO 5660 Jun 26, 1931
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5660—Transferring Control and Administration of Certain Land to the Secretary of the Interior, Nevada
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
The lands hereinafter described, that were withdrawn from settlement, location, sale, or entry by order of withdrawal dated September 30, 1926, and held for the exclusive use and benefit of the United States Navy for the development of and use as an ammunition depot, be, and…
Herbert Hoover High School • 1m
EO 5656 Jun 22, 1931
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5656—Withdrawal of Public Lands for Resurvey, Wyoming
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
The public lands in T. 32 N., R. 95 W., sixth principal meridian, Wyoming, be, and the same are hereby, withdrawn from settlement, location, sale, entry, and all forms of appropriation, pending a resurvey of said township under the act of March 3, 1909 (35 Stat. 845).
Herbert Hoover High School • 1m
EO 5655 Jun 22, 1931
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5655—Public Water Restoration No. 69, Arizona
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
So much of Executive order of May 25, 1920, creating Public Water Reserve No. 72, Arizona, as affects the land hereinafter listed is hereby revoked, and all such land not otherwise reserved or withdrawn is hereby restored to the public domain and shall become subject to…
Herbert Hoover College Level • 1m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 5658 (June 24, 1931), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-5658-form-style-and-safeguarding-executive-orders-and-proclamations.
