Departmental Organization, 1947-2003

CRS Report for Congress
Received through t he CRS W e b
Departmental Organization, 1947-2003
Updated August 12, 2003
SharonGressle
Specialist in American Na tional Go ve rnment
Go ve rnment and Finance Division


Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

Departmental Organization,
1947-2003
Summary
S i nce t he end o f W orl d W ar II, ni ne federal d epart m ent s h ave b een creat ed i n
the ex ecutive branch. The t ables i n t his report p rovide selected information o n t he
organiz ation o f t hose d epartments.



Contents
Table 1 . Department Establishment, 1947-2003 ..........................2
Table 2. C onfirmation R at es on Depart m ent S ecret ari es for
NewlyOrganizedDepartments ...................................8
Fi gu re 1. Ex ecutive Branch E nergy R eorganiz ation, 1973-1977 ............10



Departmental Organization,
1947-2001
Congress, when considering p roposals t o establish a Department of Homeland
Security, s tudied the histories of other m ajor federal agencies and departments as
possible t emplates for s tructures and admin istrative policies that worked and those
that required adjustment.
The t ables t hat follo w o ffer sel ect ed basic i nformation common t o all the
departments 1 creat ed si nce t he end o f W orl d W a r II. For each, Table 1 provides a
citation t o t he enabling l egislation, on-board staffing as it was established and as of
September 30, 2001, the budget for t he first fiscal year, t he est imated budget for
FY2003 and t he FY2004 request, b rief information o n t he authorities o r
responsibilities m oved t o t he department in the o rganic act from o ther federal
entities, and a statement o n t he new a u t horities or responsibilities added by t he
organic act. Table 2, while also including the enabling citations, provides t he name
of the f i rst secretary, holdover s tatus, nomination and confirmation d ates, and the
time lapse b etween Senate receipt of the nomination and confirmation action.
Following the t ables i s an organization a l f l o w chart pres enting t he history of
agency movement before and during t he creation o f t he Department of Energy.


1 In order of c reation: Depa rtme nt of Defens e; Departme nt of Health, Education, and
Welfare; Department of Housing and Ur ban Development; Departme nt of T r ansportation;
Departme nt of Energy; Departme nt Health and Human Services; Department of Education;
Department of V eterans Affairs, and Department of Homeland Security.

CRS-2
Table 1. D epartment Establishment, 1947-2003
Authorities or responsibilities
Enabling Budget m oved t o t he depart m e nt
Legislation On-B oardf (2003 estimate; in the organic act New aut horities or responsibilities
Depart m e nt and Date St af f i ng 2004 request) f r om other f ederal entities added by t he organic act
Defense National Security 1947 FY1950 Single cabinet-l evel Dept. of Defense Independent U.S. Ai r Force/Dept. of
Act o f 1947 (J une 30) $16.5 billion ( DOD) e s t a bl i s he d; pr e vi ous c a bi ne t - the Air Force established out of the
(10 U.S.C. 111) Military - level Departments of War (renamed U.S. Ar my Ai r F or c e s ; n e w Ce nt r a l
(61 Stat. 495)a 1,582,999 FY2003 Dept. of t he Army) a nd Navy became Intelligence Agency authorized.
J uly 26, 1947 Ci vilian - $364.0 billion subor di nat e t o DOD.
836,085
FY2004
iki/CRS-RL31472 2003Military - $379.6 billion
g/w
s.or 1,453,485
leak Ci vilian -
664,446
://wiki
httpHealth, Reorganization Plan 1953 FY1954 Converted from Federal Security Nothing new added t o t he departme nt
and No. 1 ( 5 U.S.C. a pp.) 36,320 $1.9 billion Agency. T he name was c hanged, t he by transfer from other parts of
Welfare April 11, 1953 Secretary automatically became a go ve r n me n t .
Cabinet member, and t he President was
Reformed as the authorized to appoint the undersecretary,
Departme nt of three new assistant secretaries, and a
Health and Human general counsel, all subj ect to Senate
Services in 1979 confirmation. b
Housing a nd Housing a nd Urban 1966 FY1967 T he HUD Secretary was gi ven all the T he Secretary was instructed to advi se
Urban De ve lopment Act 14,094 $3.1 billion powers, functions, a nd duties of t he the President with respect t o f ederal
e lopment P.L. 89-174 Housing a nd Home Finance Age ncy a nd programs and activities r elating t o
(79 Stat. 667) 2003 FY2003 its components, which consisted of an housing a nd urban development. He
Sept. 9, 1965 10,643 $34.5 billion Office of the Administrator, t he Federal was t o develop and r ecomme nd urban
(42 U.S.C. 3532- Housing Administration, the Public policies; provide assistance to local

3537) Housing Administration, the Federal areas concerning community and



CRS-3
Authorities or responsibilities
Enabling Budget m oved t o t he depart m e nt
Legislation On-B oardf (2003 estimate; in the organic act New aut horities or responsibilities
Depart m e nt and Date St af f i ng 2004 request) f r om other f ederal entities added by t he organic act
HUD Although t he FY2004 National M ortgage Association, the metropolitan development problems;
(continued) legi slation was $35.0 billion Community Facilities Administration, c consult and cooperate with states;
signedSept.9,HUD and t he Urban Renewal Admi nistration. hold public hearings ; encourage
did not officially comprehensive s tate and l ocal
become a department planning; encourage private
until mi dnight on enterprise; a nd conduct c ontinuing
Nov. 8, 1965. comprehensive s tudies.
r ansportation Department of 1967 FY1968 Agencies initially included: T he Office of the Secretary of
Transportation Act 58,882 $6.1 billion – U.S. Coast Guard from Dept. of Transportation was charged with
iki/CRS-RL31472(49 U.S.C. 102) T r easury. developing and i mplementing
g/w(96 Stat. 2414) 2003 FY2003 – Federal Aviation Administration from national t ransportation policy. T he
s.orOctober 15, 1966 58,819 $53.6 billion independent Federal Avi ation Age ncy. National T ransportation Safety Board
leak – Federal Hi ghway Administration; was c reated as an independent agency
://wiki FY2004$54.2 billion highway progr ams from Bureau ofPublic Roads, traffic ( automotive) safety by t h e DOT Ac t . It a s s u me d t heaccident investigation powers
http programs from National T raffic Safety formerly located i n t he Bureau of
Agency, highway safety programs from Aviation Safety of t he Ci vi l
National Highway Safety Agency, all Aeronautics Board.


from Dept. of Comme rce; and motor
carrier safety programs from Interstate
C o mme r c e C o mmi s s i o n .
– Federal Railroad Administration;
Al aska Railroad from Dept. of Interior;
rail safety activities from t he Bureau of
Railroad Safety and Service i n t he
Interstate Commerce Commi ssion; and
Office of High Speed Ground
Transportation from Dept. of
Commerce.

CRS-4
Authorities or responsibilities
Enabling Budget m oved t o t he depart m e nt
Legislation On-B oardf (2003 estimate; in the organic act New aut horities or responsibilities
Depart m e nt and Date St af f i ng 2004 request) f r om other f ederal entities added by t he organic act
Later addi tions f rom other dept s.:
(continued) – Urban Mass T r ansportation
Admi nistration ( now the Federal T r ansit
Admi nistration) from Dept. of Housing
and Urban Deve lopment i n 1968. T he
DOT Act r equired t hat t he Secretary of
T r ansportation and the Secretary of
H U D ma k e a r e c o mme n d a t i o n a s t o
where t ransit should be l ocated
iki/CRS-RL31472 admi nistratively. A r ecommendationwas made and enacted in the f ollowi ng
g/w year.
s.or – Maritime Administration t ransferred
leak from t he Dept. of Comme rce by t he
://wiki Maritime Act of 1981.
httpE n e r gy E n e r gy O r ga n i za t i o n 1977 FY1978 Move me nt of agencies and f unctions in —


Ac t 19,647 $10.467 billion the new Departme nt of Energy reflected
(42 U.S.C. 7131) (Oct. 1) actions take n t hrough t he Federal
(91 Stat. 565) FY2003 Energy Admi nistration Act of 1974
August 4, 1977 2003 $20.0 billion (P.L. 93-275), t he Energy

15,789 Reorga niza tion Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-


FY2004 438), a nd departme ntal enabling
$21.2 billion legi slation: research and waste activities
of the Atomi c Energy Commi ssion to
Energy Re search and Development
Admi nistration ( ERDA) in 1974 and
ERDA to DOE in 1977; Cost of Livi ng
Council (Energy Division); Dept. of
Commerce ( Industrial Energy
Conserva tion Progr am); Dept. of

CRS-5
Authorities or responsibilities
Enabling Budget m oved t o t he depart m e nt
Legislation On-B oardf (2003 estimate; in the organic act New aut horities or responsibilities
Depart m e nt and Date St af f i ng 2004 request) f r om other f ederal entities added by t he organic act
Ener gy Defense ( Di vi sion of Military
(continued) Applications, Division of Naval
Reactors, Naval Petroleum Reserves);
Dept. of t he Interior (Bureau of Mines
— f ossil f uel r esearch, Office of Coal
Research, Office of Energy
Conserva tion, Office of Energy Data
and Analysis, Office of Oil a nd Gas,
Office of Petroleum Allocation, Power
iki/CRS-RL31472 Marketing Administrations);Envi ronmental Protection Agency
g/w (electric and alternative vehicle R&D) ;
s.or Energy Policy Office; Federal Energy
leak Admi nistration, later t he Federal Energy
://wiki Office; Federal Power Commi ssion;
http Departme nt of Housing a nd UrbanDevelopment ( energy conservation
standards f or new buildings); Interstate
Commerce Commi ssion (oil pipeline
regulation); and National Science
Foundation ( geothermal solar heating
research).
Health and Departme nt of 1980 FY1981 When the Department of Education was —


uman Servi ces Education 155,662 $80.788 billion created, t he remaining portion of t he
Or ganization Act Departme nt of Health, Education, and
(20 U.S.C. 3508) 2003 FY2003 Welfare was redesignated as the
(93 Stat. 695) 67,091 $507.8 billion Departme nt of Health and Human
October 17, 1979 Services. ( Sec. 509 of the Act)
FY2004
$537.7billion

CRS-6
Authorities or responsibilities
Enabling Budget m oved t o t he depart m e nt
Legislation On-B oardf (2003 estimate; in the organic act New aut horities or responsibilities
Depart m e nt and Date St af f i ng 2004 request) f r om other f ederal entities added by t he organic act
Education Department of 1980d FY1981 – Eleme ntary a nd Secondary Education No significant new authorities or
Education 7,364 $14.725 billion – Postsecondary Education responsibilities.
Or ganization Act – V ocational a nd Adult Education
(20 U.S.C. 3411) 2003 FY2003 – Special Education and Rehabilitative
(93 Stat. 671) 4,592 $60.5 billion Services
October 17, 1979 – Educational Research and
FY2004 Improvement
$61.4 billion – Bilingual Education and Minority
Languages Affairs
iki/CRS-RL31472 – Office for Civil Ri ghts
g/wVeterans Veterans Affairs Act 1989 FY1990 All f unctions of the V eterans Added 40 f ull- time i nspectors
s.orAffairs (38 U.S.C. 201) 245,992 $29.2 billion Admi nistration were t ransferred t o t he ge neral t o existing IGs. M ade
leak(102 Stat. 2635) department. Secretary and 11 top positions
://wikiMarch 15, 1989 2003225,159 FY2003$57.6 billion presidential appointments s ubj ect t oSenate confirmation, vs . previ ous
http situation of Administrator, Deputy
FY2004 Admi nistrator, and IG being only
$61.4 billion presidential appointments s ubj ect t o
Senate confirmation.e
Home l a nd Homeland Security 2003 FY2003 T wenty-t wo agencies or programs were T he overarching responsibilities of
Security Act o f 2002 151,813 $25.3 billion transferred from t he Department of the the department are to prevent t errorist
(6 U.S.C. 101, note) T r easury, the Department of attacks within the United States and to
(116 Stat. 2135) FY2004 Transportation, the Department of reduce t he vulnerability of the United
Nov. 25, 2002 $28.0 billion J ustice, the Department of Health and St ates to terrorist activities. The
Huma n Servi ces, t he Departme nt of Secretary i s charged with those
Agriculture, t he Departme nt of Energy, responsibilities on both t he federal
the Department of Defense, t he and f ederal-state-l ocality coordinativeg


Departme nt of State, and t he Federal platforms.
Emerge ncy M anagement Age ncy.

CRS-7
Co ntributo rs to T able 1 : Robert Go ld ich ( Defense, 7-7633), Susan Watkins Greenfield ( Health, Educatio n, and W elfare and Health and Human Services, 7-8979), J im Riehl
(Housing and Urban Development, 7-8988), J ohn Fischer (T ransportatio n, 7-7766), Carl B ehrens (Energy, 7-8303), P aul Irwin (Educatio n, 7-7573), G ary Reyno lds ( Veterans
Affairs, 7-8987), and Sharon Gressle (Ho meland Security, 7 -8677).
e Natio nal Security Act Amend ments o f 1949 (63 Stat. 578; August 1 0 , 1949) redesignated the National M ilitary Establishment as the Department of Defense and established it
as an executive d epartment.
r fur ther info r matio n, see Th e Department o f Health , Education, and Welfa re, b y Rufus E. Miles J r. (New Yo rk: P raeger, 1974).
ngr essional Quarterly, Inc., 1965, CQ Almanac, p . 382. Additional d etail concerning the function o f each of these agencies may be fo und in the 1965 CQ Almanac, p. 365.
partment of Educatio n full-time equivalents: 1980 7 ,700; and 2001 4 ,710. Full-time equivalent equals total number o f hours wo rked in a 12-mo nth period divided b y 2080
( ho ur s in a wo r k year ) . T his calculatio n cap tur e s a ll the time wo r ke d in a year , no t the numb e r o f p eo p le e mp lo ye d a t a ny give n time.
chived CRS Report 87-919, Proposals in the 100th Congress to Make the Veterans Administra tion a Cabinet-Level Department: Ba ckground Information and Analysis of Issu es,
by Anne C. Stewart (no t available), and 1988 CQ Almanac.
fing levels are p rovided for the end of the fir st fiscal year of operatio n and fo r t he mo st current data available from the Department of Defense ( unifo r me d militar y p e r so nne l)
and the Office of P ersonnel Management ( civilian) , March 2003.
r fur ther info rmatio n o n the Department of Ho meland Security, see CRS Report RL31493, Ho meland Security: Department Organiza tio n and ManagementLegislative Phase,
by Harold C. Relyea and CRS Report RL31751, Ho meland Security: Department Organiza tio n and Management–Imp lementatio n Phase, b y Harold C. Relyea.


iki/CRS-RL31472
g/w
s.or
leak
://wiki
http

CRS-8
Table 2. C onfirmation Rates o n D epartment Secretaries f or New ly Organized Departments
TimeLapse
Holdover Dat e Dat e from
Enabling Legislation of Received i n Conf i r m e d b y Reception to
Department and Date Secretary Appoi n t e e Senat e Senat e Conf i r m a t i on
De f e ns e Na t i ona l S e c u r i t y Ac t ( Ar my-Na vy J a me s V . Forrestal No 07/26/47 07/26/47 0
Unification Act) ( 10 U.S.C. 113) (61 Stat.a
495) of J uly 26,1947
Education, Reorganization Plan No. 1 Oveta Culp Hobby No 04/02/53 04/10/53 b 8
and Welfare (5 U.S.C. app.) (67 Stat. 631) of April 11,
1953
iki/CRS-RL31472a nd Urban Housing a nd Urban Development Act (42 Robert C. Weaver No 01/14/66 01/17/66 3
g/wDeve lopment U.S.C. 3532-3537) (79 Stat. 667) of
s.or Nove mb er 9, 1965
leak
Transportation T ransportation Act Al a n Boyd No 01/ 10/67 01/12/67 2
://wiki(49 U.S.C. 102) (96 Stat. 2414) of October
http 15, 1966
E n e r gy E n e r gy O r ga n i za t i o n A c t James R. No 08/04/77 08/05/77 1
(42 U.S.C. 7131) (91 Stat. 569) of August 4, Schlesinger

1977, pursuant t o E.O. 12009 of Septemberc


13,1977
ealth and Human Department of Education Organization Act Patrica Roberts Yes 07/20/79 08/03/79 14
Services (20 U.S.C. 3508) (93 Stat. 695) of October Harris
17,1979
Education Department of Education Organization Act Shirley M ount No 11/14/79 11/30/79 16


(20 U.S.C. 3411) (93 Stat. 671) of October Huf s t e dl e r
17,1979

CRS-9
TimeLapse
Holdover Dat e Dat e from
Enabling Legislation of Received i n Conf i r m e d b y Reception to
Department and Date Secretary Appoi n t e e Senat e Senat e Conf i r m a t i on
e terans Affairs V eterans Affairs Act (38 U.S.C. 201) (102 Edwar d J .d Yes 01/20/89 03/02/89 41
Stat. 2635) of March 15, 1989 De r wi n s ki
e land Security Home land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. T homas J . Ridge No 01/07/03 01/22/03 15
101, note) (116 Stat. 2135) of Nov. 25, 2002
Ave r age Ti m e Laps e : 11
T able 2 created by Mitchel Sollenb erger, Co ngr essional Research Service, June 19, 2002.
iki/CRS-RL31472e Natio nal Security Act Amend ments o f 1949 (63 Stat. 578; August 1 0 , 1949) redesignated the National M ilitary Establishment as the Department of Defense and established it
g/was an executive d epartment.
s.orntment of Oveta Culp Hobby effective o n April 11, 1953.
leakecutive Order 12009 extend s the effective d ate o f the Energy Or ganizatio n Act to October 1 , 1977.
nate confir med Edward J . Derwinski as both Secretary and Ad ministrato r o f Veterans Affair s effective o n March 2, 1989.


://wiki
http

Figure 1. Executive Branch Energy Reorganization, 1973-1977
Note: Source unknown.
Laws
P.L. 93-275: Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974
P.L. 93-438: Energy Reorganiz ation Act of 1974
P.L. 95-91: Department of Energy Organiz ation Act
Agencies
AEC: Atomic Energy Commission
CLC: Cost of Li ving Council (Energy Division)
DOC: Department of Commerce (Industrial E nergy C onservation P rogram)
DOD: Department of Defense
DMA: Division of Military Applications
DNR : D i v i s i o n o f N aval R eact ors
NP R: Naval P etroleum Reserves
DOI: Department of the Interior
BOM: Bu reau of Mines (fossil fuel research) (moved i n 1977)
OC R : Offi ce of C o al R esearch
OEC: Office of Energy Conservation
OEDA: Office of Energy Data and Analysis
OOG: Office of Oil and Gas (moved i n 1977)
OPA: Office of Petroleum Allocation
PMA: Power M arketing Administration
EPA: Environmental P rotection Agency (el ect ric and alternative vehicle R& D)
EPO: Energy Policy Office
ER DA: Energy R esearch and D evel opm ent A dm i n i s t rat i o n
FEA: Federal Energy Administration



FEO: Federal E nergy O ffice
FP C: Federal P ower Commission
HUD: Department of Housing and Urban Devel opment (energy conservation s tandards
for new buildings )
ICC: Interstate Commerce C ommission (oil pipeline regulation)
NRC: Nucl ear Regulatory Commission
NSF: National S cience Foundation (ge othermal solar h eating research)