Whereas certain Federal agencies from time to time require in the administration of their activities a system of numerical identification of accounts of individual persons; and Whereas some seventy million persons have heretofore been assigned account numbers pursuant to the Social Security Act; and Whereas a large percentage of Federal employees have already been assigned account numbers pursuant to the Social Security Act; and Whereas it is desirable in the interest of economy and orderly administration that the Federal Government move towards the use of a single, unduplicated numerical identification system of accounts and avoid the unnecessary establishment of additional systems: Now, Therefore . by virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, it is hereby ordered as follows: 1. Hereafter any Federal department, establishment, or agency shall, whenever the head thereof finds it advisable to establish a new system of permanent account numbers pertaining to individual persons, utilize exclusively the Social Security Act account numbers assigned pursuant to Title 26, section 402.502 of the 1940 Supplement to the Code of Federal Regulations and pursuant to paragraph 2 of this order. 2. The Social Security Board shall provide for the assignment of an account number to each person who is required by any Federal agency to have such a number but who has not previously been assigned such number by the Board. The Board may accomplish this purpose by (a) assigning such numbers to individual persons, (b) assigning blocks of numbers to Federal agencies for reassignment to individual persons, or (c) making such other arrangements for the assignment of numbers as it may deem appropriate. 3. The Social Security Board shall furnish, upon request of any Federal agency utilizing the numerical identification system of accounts provided for in this order, the account number pertaining to any person with whom such agency has an account or the name and other identifying data pertaining to any account number of any such person. 4. The Social Security Board and each Federal agency shall maintain the confidential character of information relating to individual persons obtained pursuant to the provisions of this order. 5. There shall be transferred to the Social Security Board, from time to time, such amounts as the Director of the Bureau of the Budget shall determine to be required for reimbursement by any Federal agency for the services rendered by the Board pursuant to the provisions of this order. 6. This order shall be published in the Federal Register . FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, November 22, 1943.
Executive Order 9397 Amended ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Executive Order 9397—Numbering System for Federal Accounts Relating to Individual Persons
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 2 min read (423 words) •
● Amended
🎯 Primary Mandate
Hereafter any Federal department, establishment, or agency shall, whenever the head thereof finds it advisable to establish a new system of permanent account numbers pertaining to individual persons, utilize exclusively the Social Security Act account numbers assigned pursuant to Title 26, section 402.502 of the 1940 Supplement to the Code of Federal Regulations and pursuant to paragraph 2 of this order. 2.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
Legal Status & Amendment History
AmendedActions on this order
- Amended by EO 13478
Source: Office of the Federal Register executive order disposition notes. Orders before 1994 show only actions recorded by later orders.
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 November 22, 1943, this order concerns Numbering System for Federal Accounts Relating to Individual Persons. Hereafter any Federal department, establishment, or agency shall, whenever the head thereof finds it advisable to establish a new system of permanent account numbers pertaining to individual persons, utilize exclusively the Social Security Act account numbers assigned pursuant to Title 26, section 402.502 of the 1940 Supplement to the Code of Federal Regulations and pursuant to paragraph 2 of this order. 2.
Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
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Hereafter any Federal department, establishment, or agency shall, whenever the head thereof finds it advisable to establish a new system of permanent account numbers pertaining to individual persons, utilize exclusively the Social Security Act account numbers assigned pursuant to Title 26, section 402.502 of the 1940 Supplement to the Code of Federal Regulations and pursuant to paragraph 2 of this order. 2.
▪
The Social Security Board shall provide for the assignment of an account number to each person who is required by any Federal agency to have such a number but who has not previously been assigned such number by the Board.
▪
The Board may accomplish this purpose by (a) assigning such numbers to individual persons, (b) assigning blocks of numbers to Federal agencies for reassignment to individual persons, or (c) making such other arrangements for the assignment of numbers as it may deem appropriate. 3.
▪
The Social Security Board shall furnish, upon request of any Federal agency utilizing the numerical identification system of accounts provided for in this order, the account number pertaining to any person with whom such agency has an account or the name and other identifying data pertaining to any account number of any such person. 4.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ 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 2 (Zone of Twilight)
§
"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."
— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
JM
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.
Madisonian Stance: Vigilant / Cautionary
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: Defends Vigor & Dispatch
GM
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.
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.
⚖️ Discretionary Twilight Zone
34 / 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
Moderate Friction
Due Process & Individual Rights
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
Moderate Friction
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.
Benchmark: Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
⚖️
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%).
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
423
2,666 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
21.3
Post-Graduate Legal
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.
George W. Bush • 2008-11-18
Related Executive Orders
Other executive actions signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt around this period.
EO 9396 Nov 22, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9396—Authorizing the Secretary of War to Issue Citations in the Name of the President of the United States to Army Units for Outstanding Performance in Action
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
The Secretary of War is hereby authorized and directed to issue a citation in the name of the President of the United States, as public evidence of deserved honor and distinction, to any organization, unit, detachment, or installation of the Army of the United States or the…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Post-Graduate Legal • 1m
EO 9395 Nov 20, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9395-B—Possession of Leather Manufacturing Plants Located in Salem, Peabody, and Danvers, Massachusetts
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
And directed as follows: The Secretary of War is authorized immediately to take possession of and operate any or all of the following plants: Hunt-Rankin Leather Company, Summit Street, Peabody, Massachusetts. Leach-Heckel Leather Company, 72 Flint Street, Salem, Massachusetts.
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 2m
EO 9395 Nov 20, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9395-A—Amending Executive Order No. 9017 of January 12, 1942, To Provide for Alternate Public Members of the National War Labor Board
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Executive Order No. 9017 of January 12, 1942, entitled "Establishment of the National War Labor Board," as amended by Executive Order No. 9038 of January 24, 1942, be, and it is hereby further amended so as to provide for the appointment by the President, for such periods of…
Franklin D. Roosevelt College Level • 1m
EO 9399 Nov 25, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9399—Authorizing the Secretary of the Navy To Take Possession of and Operate Part of the Plant and Facilities of Remington Rand, Inc., in the Town of Southport, County of Chemung, State of New York
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, pursuant to the powers vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, including section 9 of the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 as amended, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Post-Graduate Legal • 2m
EO 9398 Nov 25, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9398—Extension of Trust Periods on Indian Lands Expiring During Calendar Year 1944
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
The periods of trust applying to Indian lands, whether of a tribal or individual status, which, unless extended, will expire during the calendar year 1944, be, and they are hereby, extended for a further period of twenty-five years from the date on which any such trust would…
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 1m
EO 9400 Dec 3, 1943
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 9400—Authorizing the Secretary of the Navy To Take Possession of and Operate the Shipyard of the Los Angeles Shipbuilding and Drydock Corporation at Los Angeles, California
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, pursuant to the powers vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, including section 9 of the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, as amended, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Post-Graduate Legal • 2m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 9397 (Nov. 22, 1943), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-9397-numbering-system-for-federal-accounts-relating-individual-persons.
