By virtue of the authority vested in me by section 257 (a) of the Revenue Act of 1926 (44 Stat. 9, 51); section 55 of the Revenue Act of 1932 (47 Stat. 169, 189) as amended by section 218 (h) of the National Industrial Recovery Act (48 Stat. 195, 209); sections 215 (e) and 216 (b) of the National Industrial Recovery Act (48 Stat. 195, 208); sections 55 (a), 701 (e), and 702 (b) of the Revenue Act of 1934 (48 Stat. 680, 698, 770); sections 105 (e) and 106 (c) of the Revenue Act of 1935 (49 Stat. 1014, 1018; 1019); and sections 55 (a), 351 (c), and 503 (a) of the Revenue Act of 1936 (49 Stat. 1648, 1671, 1733, 1738), it is hereby ordered that income, excess-profits, and capital stock tax returns made under the Revenue Act of 1932, the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended by the National Industrial Recovery Act, the National Industrial Recovery Act, the Revenue Act of 1934, the Revenue Act of 1935, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1936, the Revenue Act of 1936, and the Revenue Act of 1936, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1937, for the calendar year 1932 and all subsequent taxable years to and including the fiscal year ending November 30, 1938, shall be open to inspection by the Special Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, or any duly authorized subcommittee thereof, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of House Resolution 282, passed May 26, 1938 (Seventy-fifth Congress, third session); such inspection to be in accordance and upon compliance with the rules and regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury in the Treasury Decision relating to the inspection of returns by that committee, approved by me this date. This order shall be published in the Federal Register . FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, July 14, 1938.
Executive Order 7933-A—Inspection of Income, Excess-Profits, and Capital Stock Tax Returns by the Special Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives
Executive Brief • At a Glance
Income, excess-profits, and capital stock tax returns made under the Revenue Act of 1932, the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended by the National Industrial Recovery Act, the National Industrial Recovery Act, the Revenue Act of 1934, the Revenue Act of 1935, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1936, the Revenue Act of 1936, and the Revenue Act of 1936, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1937, for the calendar year 1932 and all subsequent taxable years to and including the fiscal year ending November 30, 1938, shall be open to inspection by the Special Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, or any duly authorized subcommittee thereof, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of House Resolution 282, passed May 26, 1938…
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 July 14, 1938, this order concerns Inspection of Income, Excess-Profits, and Capital Stock Tax Returns by the Special Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives. Income, excess-profits, and capital stock tax returns made under the Revenue Act of 1932, the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended by the National Industrial Recovery Act, the National Industrial Recovery Act, the Revenue Act of 1934, the Revenue Act of 1935, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1936, the Revenue Act of 1936, and the Revenue Act of 1936, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1937, for the calendar year 1932 and…
Key Directives & Operative Actions
Income, excess-profits, and capital stock tax returns made under the Revenue Act of 1932, the Revenue Act of 1932, as amended by the National Industrial Recovery Act, the National Industrial Recovery Act, the Revenue Act of 1934, the Revenue Act of 1935, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1936, the Revenue Act of 1936, and the Revenue Act of 1936, as amended by the Revenue Act of 1937, for the calendar year 1932 and all subsequent taxable years to and including the fiscal year ending November 30, 1938, shall be open to inspection by the Special Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, or any duly authorized subcommittee thereof, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of House Resolution 282, passed May 26, 1938…
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
"The direction of war implies the direction of the common strength; and the power of directing and employing the common strength must be under the direction of the single hand of the Executive." — Federalist No. 74 (1788)
Hamilton would forcefully champion executive discretion here. For foreign entanglements, commerce defense, and national security, deliberative assemblies are too slow and faction-ridden. A unified, energetic Executive exercising swift command is precisely what the Philadelphia Convention intended for national preservation.
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.
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
Confined strictly to internal federal jurisdiction, federal property, or direct military command.
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 in close harmony with statutory authority and standard Article II supervisory execution.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 7933 (July 14, 1938), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-7933-inspection-income-excess-profits-and-capital-stock-tax-returns-the.