By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, and in order to effectuate further the purposes of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act (c. 257, 45 Stat. 1222), it is hereby ordered that the public lands of the United States in the following-described area in Nye County, Nevada, be, and the same are hereby, reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for wild birds and animals, subject to existing valid rights and an existing stock-driveway withdrawal: Mount Diablo Meridian T. 6 N. R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, secs. 1, 2, 11 and 12. T. 7 N., R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, secs. 1, 2, 3; secs. 10 to 16, inclusive; secs. 22 to 26, inclusive; and secs. 35 and 36. T. 8 N., R. 55 E., secs. 1, 11, 12, and 13; sec. 14, NE¼, NE¼NW¼, S½SW¼, and SE¼; secs. 22 to 27, inclusive; and secs. 34, 35, and 36. T. 9 N., R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, sec. 36. T. 6 N., R. 56 E., secs. 1 to 13, inclusive; sec. 14, N½, N½SW¼, SW¼SW¼, N½SE¼, and SE¼SE¼; sec. 15, all. T. 7 N., R. 56 E., all. T. 8 N., R. 56 E., all. T. 9 N., R. 56 E., sec. 25, and secs. 31 to 36, inclusive. T. 6 N., R. 57 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, secs. 3 to 9, inclusive; secs. 16, 17, and 18. T. 7 N., R. 57 E., sec. 2, NW¼; secs. 3 to 10, inclusive; secs. 15 to 22, inclusive; secs. 27 to 34, inclusive; and unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, sec. 1; sec. 2, NE¼ and S½; secs. 11, 12, 14, and 23. T. 8 N., R. 57 E., secs. 1 to 11, inclusive; sec. 12, NW¼; secs. 14 to 23, inclusive; secs. 26 to 35, inclusive; and unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, sec. 12, NE¼ and S½; secs. 13, 24, 25, and 36. T. 9 N., R. 57 E., secs. 31 to 36, inclusive. It is unlawful within this reservation: (a) to hunt, trap, capture, willfully disturb, or kill any wild animal or bird of any kind whatever, to take or destroy the nests or eggs of any wild bird, to occupy or use any part of the reservation, or to enter thereon for any purpose, except under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture; (b) to cut, bum, or destroy any timber, underbrush, grass, or other natural growth; (c) willfully to leave fire or to suffer it to burn unattended near any forest, timber, or other inflammable material; (d) after building a fire in or near any forest, timber, or other inflammable material, to leave it without totally extinguishing it; and (e) willfully to injure, molest, or destroy any property of the United States. All persons are hereby informed that sections 52, 53 (as amended), and 54 (as amended) of the Criminal Code of the United States (secs. 106, 107, 145, title 18, U.S.C.), and section 14 of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act of February 18, 1929 (sec. 715m, title 16, U.S.C.) prescribe penalties for the commission of the offenses enumerated in the preceding paragraph. This refuge shall be known as the Railroad Valley Migratory Bird Refuge. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT The White House, May 2, 1934.
Executive Order 6697—Establishing Railroad Valley Migratory Bird Refuge, Nevada
Executive Brief • At a Glance
The public lands of the United States in the following-described area in Nye County, Nevada, be, and the same are hereby, reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for wild birds and animals, subject to existing valid rights and an existing stock-driveway withdrawal: Mount Diablo Meridian T. 6 N. R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, secs. 1, 2, 11 and 12.
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 2, 1934, this order concerns Establishing Railroad Valley Migratory Bird Refuge, Nevada. The public lands of the United States in the following-described area in Nye County, Nevada, be, and the same are hereby, reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for wild birds and animals, subject to existing valid rights and an existing stock-driveway withdrawal: Mount Diablo Meridian T. 6 N. R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed…
Key Directives & Operative Actions
The public lands of the United States in the following-described area in Nye County, Nevada, be, and the same are hereby, reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for wild birds and animals, subject to existing valid rights and an existing stock-driveway withdrawal: Mount Diablo Meridian T. 6 N. R. 55 E., unsurveyed, what will probably be, when surveyed, secs. 1, 2, 11 and 12.
It is unlawful within this reservation: (a) to hunt, trap, capture, willfully disturb, or kill any wild animal or bird of any kind whatever, to take or destroy the nests or eggs of any wild bird, to occupy or use any part of the reservation, or to enter thereon for any purpose, except under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Agriculture; (b) to cut, bum, or destroy any timber, underbrush, grass, or other natural growth; (c) willfully to leave fire or to suffer it to burn unattended near any forest, timber, or other inflammable material; (d) after building a fire in or near any forest, timber, or other inflammable material, to leave it without totally extinguishing it; and (e) willfully to injure, molest…
All persons are hereby informed that sections 52, 53 (as amended), and 54 (as amended) of the Criminal Code of the United States (secs. 106, 107, 145, title 18, U.S.C.), and section 14 of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act of February 18, 1929 (sec. 715m, title 16, U.S.C.) prescribe penalties for the commission of the offenses enumerated in the preceding paragraph.
This refuge shall be known as the Railroad Valley Migratory Bird Refuge.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
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.
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
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.
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.
Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions
An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Administers commerce or fiscal programs requiring ongoing statutory delegation and legislative oversight.
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 6697 (May 2, 1934), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-6697-establishing-railroad-valley-migratory-bird-refuge-nevada.