Presidential Executive Order 13781 (Donald Trump, 2017)

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June 2018 White House federal agency restructuring proposal

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Executive Order 13781: Comprehensive Plan for Reorganizing the Executive Branch is a presidential executive order issued by President Donald Trump (R) in March 2017 that instructed the director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop and propose a plan to reorganize the federal executive branch and eliminate unnecessary agencies and programs. The order instructed the OMB director to seek input on the proposal from the public and from agency officials, and to consider features such as the redundancy of an agency or program and whether the costs of a government program outweigh its benefits.[1]

Executive Order 13781: background

"Deconstructing the administrative state"

In 2016, then-presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) campaigned on a platform that included a pledge to rein in what he considered to be burdensome federal regulations that slowed down economic growth—an agenda that his former chief strategist Steve Bannon characterized as the "deconstruction of the administrative state." After taking the oath of office on January 20, 2017, President Trump instituted a regulatory freeze. Ten days later, on January 30, 2017, Trump issued E.O. 13771, which called for any new regulatory activity by agencies to amount to a net cost of zero dollars by the end of the fiscal year. The following month, Trump issued E.O. 13777, which included provisions for implementing and enforcing E.O. 13771.[2][3]

Developing a plan to reorganize the federal executive branch

Three weeks after issuing E.O. 13777, the Trump administration issued Executive Order 13781, which was dated March 13, 2017, and appeared in the March 16 issue of the Federal Register. The order instructed the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop and propose a plan to reorganize the federal executive branch and eliminate unnecessary agencies and programs. The OMB is a United States executive agency formed in 1970 to, according to its mission statement on its website, "serve the President of the United States in implementing his vision across the Executive Branch." The OMB reports directly to the president and is the largest element of the Executive Office of the President. Among its chief responsibilities are managing the development and execution of the annual federal budget, overseeing federal agencies and executive branch operations, and coordinating and reviewing agency regulations. At the time E.O. 13781 was issued and implemented, former U.S. Rep. Mick Mulvaney served as director of the OMB.[1][4]

Executive Order 13781: its provisions

E.O. 13781 has three sections. The first section describes the order's purpose, the second section provides details for implementing the order, and the third section gives a disclaimer about the order's effects.[1]

Purpose

The first section of the order describes its purpose as improving the executive branch by reorganizing federal agencies and programs and eliminating unnecessary ones. To that end, the order instructs the director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop and propose a comprehensive reorgnization plan:[1]

“

Section 1. Purpose. This order is intended to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the executive branch by directing the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (Director) to propose a plan to reorganize governmental functions and eliminate unnecessary agencies (as defined in section 551(1) of title 5, United States Code), components of agencies, and agency programs.[5]

”

Development of a reorganization plan

On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the reorganization plan pursuant to E.O. 13781. Click here to view the full plan.

The second section of the order describes how a reorganization plan should be developed and proposed. The section begins by directing agency heads to develop reorganization plans for their own agencies and submit them to the OMB director within 180 days of the order's issue date. The order also instructs the director to publish a notice in the Federal Register seeking comments and ideas from the public about reorganizing the executive branch:[1]

“

Sec. 2. Proposed Plan to Improve the Efficiency, Effectiveness, and Accountability of Federal Agencies, Including, as Appropriate, to Eliminate or Reorganize Unnecessary or Redundant Federal Agencies. (a) Within 180 days of the date of this order, the head of each agency shall submit to the Director a proposed plan to reorganize the agency, if appropriate, in order to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of that agency.

(b) The Director shall publish a notice in the Federal Register inviting the public to suggest improvements in the organization and functioning of the executive branch and shall consider the suggestions when formulating the proposed plan described in subsection (c) of this section.[5]

”

Once suggestions from agencies and the public have been submitted to the OMB director, the director is given 180 days to propose a comprehensive reorganization plan to the president, including recommendations for legislation and administrative changes:[1]

“

(c) Within 180 days after the closing date for the submission of suggestions pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, the Director shall submit to the President a proposed plan to reorganize the executive branch in order to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of agencies. The proposed plan shall include, as appropriate, recommendations to eliminate unnecessary agencies, components of agencies, and agency programs, and to merge functions. The proposed plan shall include recommendations for any legislation or administrative measures necessary to achieve the proposed reorganization.[5]

”

The order instructs the director of OMB to consider the following things "in addition to any other relevant factors" when developing the proposed reorganization plan:[1]

“

(i) whether some or all of the functions of an agency, a component, or a program are appropriate for the Federal Government or would be better left to State or local governments or to the private sector through free enterprise;

(ii) whether some or all of the functions of an agency, a component, or a program are redundant, including with those of another agency, component, or program;

(iii) whether certain administrative capabilities necessary for operating an agency, a component, or a program are redundant with those of another agency, component, or program;

(iv) whether the costs of continuing to operate an agency, a component, or a program are justified by the public benefits it provides; and

(v) the costs of shutting down or merging agencies, components, or programs, including the costs of addressing the equities of affected agency staff.[5]

”

The order also instructs the OMB director to "consult with the head of each agency and, consistent with applicable law, with persons or entities outside the Federal Government with relevant expertise in organizational structure and management."[1]

Disclaimer

The final section of the order has a disclaimer noting that "nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect" the statutory authority of agencies and agency leadership or the functions of the OMB director. The order further notes that it is subject to applicable law and the availability of appropriations, and that it does not create any right or benefit enforceable against the United States government or any component thereof.[1]

Executive Order 13781: resulting restructuring proposal

On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a report pursuant to E.O.13781 that proposed increasing the overall efficiency of the executive branch by enacting the broadest changes to the organization of federal agencies since the New Deal. The plan was designed to "serve as a cornerstone for a productive, bipartisan dialogue around making the Federal Government work for the 21st century," according to a White House press release.[6][7]

The full reorganization plan featured 34 proposals aimed at aligning the core missions and responsibilities of executive agencies. The proposal included the following, among other changes:

  • merging the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) into a single federal agency;
  • restructuring the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Postal Service;
  • reorganizing several administrative programs under different agencies.

While some of the proposed changes could be implemented through executive action, Congress would need to take legislative action to enact the full plan, according to OMB director Mick Mulvaney.[7]

Click here for Ballotpedia's full coverage of the Trump administration's reorganization plan for executive agencies.

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Federal Register, "Executive Order 13781: Comprehensive Plan for Reorganizing the Executive Branch," March 16, 2017
  2. ↑ The Washington Post, "Bannon vows a daily fight for ‘deconstruction of the administrative state,'" February 23, 2017
  3. ↑ Bloomberg News, "Trump’s 2-for-1 Regulatory Policy Yields Minimal Results," September 29, 2017
  4. ↑ Office of Management and Budget, "The Mission and Structure of the Office of Management and Budget," archived December 19, 2016
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  6. ↑ WhiteHouse.gov, "President Donald J. Trump Is Reforming the Federal Government, Making it More Efficient, Effective, and Accountable," June 21, 2018
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Reuters, "White House proposes merging Labor, Education departments," June 21, 2018
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