By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by the Emergency Appropriation Act, fiscal year 1935, approved June 19, 1934 (Public, No. 412, 73d Cong.), appropriating $525,000,000 to meet the emergency and necessity for relief in stricken agricultural areas, there is hereby allocated from the said appropriation the sum of $65,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture for the control of the infestation of the Japanese beetle at St. Louis, Missouri, which infestation constitutes a menace to the stricken agricultural area of the Mississippi Valley and westward thereof. In carrying out this order the Secretary of Agriculture shall have authority to make all necessary expenditures for the employment of persons and means, including the procurement of materials used for control and equipment or assistance necessary for their application. The moneys herein made available shall be expended through such established agencies of the United States Department of Agriculture and other agencies of the United States Government as the Secretary of Agriculture may designate and when the Secretary of Agriculture has been assured that the State and local governments concerned have taken such action and provided such assistance as the Secretary of Agriculture may deem necessary to accomplish the purpose of this order. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT The White House, August 11, 1934.
Executive Order 6820—Allocation of Funds for the Control of the Infestation of the Japanese Beetle at St. Louis, Missouri
Executive Brief • At a Glance
There is hereby allocated from the said appropriation the sum of $65,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture for the control of the infestation of the Japanese beetle at St. Louis, Missouri, which infestation constitutes a menace to the stricken agricultural area of the Mississippi Valley and westward thereof.
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 August 11, 1934, this order concerns Allocation of Funds for the Control of the Infestation of the Japanese Beetle at St. Louis, Missouri. There is hereby allocated from the said appropriation the sum of $65,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture for the control of the infestation of the Japanese beetle at St. Louis, Missouri, which infestation constitutes a menace to the stricken agricultural area of the Mississippi Valley and westward thereof.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
There is hereby allocated from the said appropriation the sum of $65,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture for the control of the infestation of the Japanese beetle at St. Louis, Missouri, which infestation constitutes a menace to the stricken agricultural area of the Mississippi Valley and westward thereof.
In carrying out this order the Secretary of Agriculture shall have authority to make all necessary expenditures for the employment of persons and means, including the procurement of materials used for control and equipment or assistance necessary for their application.
The moneys herein made available shall be expended through such established agencies of the United States Department of Agriculture and other agencies of the United States Government as the Secretary of Agriculture may designate and when the Secretary of Agriculture has been assured that the State and local governments concerned have taken such action and provided such assistance as the Secretary of Agriculture may deem necessary to accomplish the purpose of this order.
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 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."
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.
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 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.
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
Directs internal executive branch machinery, agency workflows, and federal personnel.
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 President operates strictly as the constitutional Chief Executive, carrying out policy established by Congress with strong statutory backing.
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 6820 (Aug. 11, 1934), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-6820-allocation-funds-for-the-control-the-infestation-the-japanese-beetle.