Order Code RL31497
Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
Creation of Executive Departments:
Highlights from the Legislative
History of Modern Precedents
Updated July 30, 2002
Thomas P. Carr
Analyst in American National Government
Government and Finance Division
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

Creation of Executive Departments:
Highlights from the Legislative History of Modern
Precedents
Summary
Congress is now considering proposals to create a Department of Homeland
Security. Since World War II, Congress has created or implemented major
reorganizations of seven of the now existing 14 Cabinet departments. This report
describes the principal elements of legislative process that established the
Departments of Defense; Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) (now, in part,
Health and Human Services); Housing and Urban Development; Transportation;
Energy; Education; and Veterans Affairs.
Congressional consideration of legislation establishing Cabinet departments has
generally exhibited certain common procedural elements. In each case, successful
congressional action was preceded by a presidential endorsement, the submission of
draft legislation, or, in one instance, a reorganization plan by the President.
In the Congress in which they were approved, these proposals were considered
by the House Committee on Government Operations and the Senate Committee on
Governmental Affairs (or their predecessors). The bill creating the Department of
Defense (considered by the Senate Armed Services Committee), and the bill creating
the Department of Energy (considered in part by the House Post Office and Civil
Service Committee), were the two exceptions to this procedure.
With the exception of the Defense and Veterans Affairs Departments, all the
departmental creation proposals were considered in the House under provisions of
an open rule. In the Senate, the bills were most often brought up by unanimous
consent; the HEW reorganization joint resolution was called up by motion.
Votes in committee and on final passage were generally by comfortable
majorities. An exception was the House consideration of the Department of
Education bill (H.R. 2444, 96th Congress), which cleared committee by a single vote
and passed the House by a four-vote margin.
Finally, with the exception of the joint resolution approving the Department of
HEW reorganization plan, all the legislation went to conference to resolve
differences between House and Senate versions. With two exceptions, conferees
were drawn from the reporting committees. House and Senate Veterans Affairs
Committee members joined the conference on the Department of Veterans Affairs
legislation, and members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and
the House Post Office and Civil Service Committee served on the Energy
Department conference.
Additional information on the history of creating Cabinet departments appears
in CRS Report RL31472, Departmental Organization, 1947-2001. CRS Report
RL30673, The President’s Cabinet: Evolution, Alternatives, and Proposals for
Change,
analyzes the role of the Cabinet.

Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Procedural Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Legislative Histories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Department of Defense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Department of Health, Education and Welfare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Department of Housing and Urban Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Department of Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Department of Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Department of Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Department of Veterans Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Proposals to Create Additional Cabinet Departments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
List of Tables
Table 1: Key Legislative Documents and Dates Related to the Creation of
Cabinet Departments, 1947 to 1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Creation of Executive Departments:
Highlights from the Legislative History of
Modern Precedents
Introduction
On June 6, 2002, President George W. Bush announced that he would send a
proposal to Congress to create a Department of Homeland Security. Such legislation
had already been introduced in both the House and Senate, but the President’s
endorsement of the idea added momentum to the effort. The President formally
submitted his proposal to Congress on June 18, 2002. The bill was introduced, by
request,1 by Majority Leader Richard Armey as H.R. 5005 on June 24.
On June 13, 2002, House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and Minority Leader
Representative Richard Gephardt (D-MO) announced an agreement on the
procedures to be used in the House of Representatives for committee consideration
of the Homeland Security Department legislation. On June 19, 2002, the House
adopted H.Res. 449, by voice vote, creating a Select Committee on Homeland
Security.
Pursuant to the provisions of H.Res. 449, the President’s bill was referred to the
Select Committee on Homeland Security and to the Government Reform Committee,
and simultaneously to 11 other committees with relevant jurisdiction. By July 12,
all of the standing committees concerned were to report their recommendations to the
Select Committee, which is charged with marking up the legislation. H.R. 5005 was
reported to the House on July 24 by the Select Committee on Homeland Security
(H.Rept. 107-609). The bill passed the House July 26 by a 295-132 vote.
In contrast, the Senate chose to handle Homeland Security Department
proposals within the existing standing committee structure. On May 22, 2002, the
Senate Governmental Affairs Committee had marked up, and ordered reported with
amendments, S. 2452, the National Homeland Security and Combating Terrorism
Act of 2002, introduced by Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-CT). The bill was reported
to the Senate on June 24, 2002, with a written report (S.Rept. 107-175). The Senate
Governmental Affairs Committee revisited the issue, approving a substitute to S.
2452 by a 12-5 vote on July 25.
1Members who embrace a legislative concept can introduce it as their own, or they can
introduce it “by request,” with those words printed on the face of the bill, after their name
as sponsor. This implies they introduced the bill out of professional courtesy, but does not
mean they are necessarily embracing its ideas.

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Since World War II, Congress has acted to create or implement major
reorganizations of seven of the now existing 14 Cabinet departments: the Department
of Defense (1947);2 the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW)
(1953);3 the Department of Housing and Urban Development (1965); the Department
of Transportation (1966); the Department of Energy (1977); the Department of
Education (1979); and the Department of Veterans Affairs (1988).
This report describes the principal elements of legislative process used to
establish these executive branch entities. Legislative histories of the organic acts
of these Cabinet departments are set out in narrative form in the body of the report,
and in tabular format in the appendix. (For additional information on the organization
of these departments, see CRS Report RL31472, Departmental Organization, 1947-
2001
. CRS Report RL30673, The President’s Cabinet: Evolution, Alternatives, and
Proposals for Change
analyzes the role of the Cabinet.)
Procedural Characteristics
Congressional consideration of legislation establishing Cabinet departments has
generally exhibited certain common procedural elements. For instance, each
successful proposal was preceded by a presidential endorsement and the submission
of draft legislation by the executive branch.
In the Congress in which they were approved, these proposals were considered
by the House Committee on Government Operations and the Senate Committee on
Governmental Affairs.4 (Consideration and referral to committee of similar or related
measures in preceding Congresses is beyond the scope of this report.)
With the exception of the Defense and Veterans Affairs bills, all the
departmental creation measures were considered in the House under provisions of an
open rule. (The Defense measure was brought up by unanimous consent, and
Veterans Affairs legislation was considered under suspension of the rules.) In the
Senate, the bills were most often brought up by unanimous consent; the HEW
reorganization joint resolution was called up by motion.
Votes to approve the various Cabinet departments in committee and on the floor
were generally by comfortable majorities. An exception was House consideration of
the Department of Education bill, H.R. 2444, which cleared committee by a single
vote and passed the House by a four-vote margin.
2The War Department was established in 1789. The National Security Act of 1947
reorganized all military services under a single National Military Establishment which, in
turn, was redesignated the Department of Defense in 1949.
3The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was established in 1953. The remaining
components of the department were renamed the Department of Health and Human Services
in 1979, when the Department of Education was created.
4Exceptions to this general rule are Senate bill S. 758 in the 80th Cong., creating the National
Military Establishment, and H.R. 2444 in the 95th Cong., the legislation establishing the
Department of Energy. Consideration of these measures is detailed in later sections of this
report.

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Finally, with the exception of the resolution approving the HEW reorganization
plan, which was passed by the House and agreed to in the Senate without
amendment, all the legislation went to conference to resolve differences between the
House and Senate versions. With two exceptions, conferees were drawn from the
reporting committees. In the case of the Department of Veterans Affairs legislation,
members of the Veterans Affairs Committees in the House and Senate joined
conferees from the House Government Operations and Senate Governmental Affairs
Committees. For the Energy Department conference, three members of the Energy
and Natural Resources Committee were included in the Senate conference delegation,
and three members of the Post Office and Civil Service Committee were included in
the House conference delegation.
Legislative Histories
Department of Defense
The National Security Act of 1947, modified by amendments in 1949, set the
organizational framework for the Department of Defense. Proposals to coordinate
the activities of the military services were initially considered by Congress in 1944.
Specific plans were put forth in 1945 by the Army, the Navy, and the Joint Chiefs of
Staff. In a special message to Congress on December 19, 1945, President Harry S
Truman proposed creation of a unified Department of National Defense.
A bill based upon Truman’s recommendation was reported favorably by the
Senate Military Affairs Committee in April 1946. The Military Affairs Committee
made further changes to the bill in response to Navy objections related to their
retention of control over naval aviation and the Marine Corps. The Naval Affairs
Committee held hearings on the revised bill in July 1946, but objected to the
concentration of power in a single department. The Naval Affairs Committee did not
report the measure, effectively blocking further consideration of the bill.5
President Truman renewed his efforts in 1947, sending draft legislation to
Congress that had been vetted with the Army and the Navy. The President’s bill was
introduced in the House (H.R. 2319) on February 28, 1947, by Representative Clare
Hoffman (R-MI), and referred to the committee he chaired, the Committee on
Expenditures in the Executive Departments (renamed the Committee on Government
Operations on July 3, 1952). Hearings on the House bill, H.R. 2319, were held
between April and July. On July 16, the Committee on Expenditures in the
Executive Departments reported a clean bill, H.R. 4214, incorporating amendments
agreed to by the committee (H.Rept. 80-961).
The House bill, H.R. 4214, was brought up for consideration under a
unanimous consent agreement that waived all points of order against the bill, and
allotted 5 hours of general debate. When the bill reached the floor on July 19,
several members of the Armed Services Committee strongly supported the bill, but
5The Military Affairs Committee and the Naval Affairs Committee were merged into a new
Armed Services Committee by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946.

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opposition came from several quarters, including members of the Appropriations,
Veterans Affairs, and Armed Services Committees.6 The House considered more than
a dozen amendments, including several successful amendments offered by
Representative W. Sterling Cole (R-NY), to protect the status of the Navy. The
amended bill passed by voice vote on July 19. The House then passed the Senate bill
after substituting the text of H.R. 4214.
In the Senate, S. 758 was introduced March 3, 1947, by Senator John Chandler
Gurney (R-SD), chairman of the Armed Services Committee. It was referred to the
Armed Services Committee, but this referral was delayed when the Senate
Committee on Expenditures in the Executive Departments (renamed the Committee
on Government Operations on March 3, 1952) also claimed jurisdiction over the bill.
The dispute was resolved when President Pro Tempore Arthur Vandenberg (R-MI)
ruled that the proper referral was to the Armed Services Committee. This ruling was
subsequently upheld by the Senate on a voice vote.7
The Senate Armed Services Committee held extensive hearings over a 10-week
period. The bill was marked up in executive session May 20, 1947, amended, and
approved by a 12-0 vote. Despite the unanimous vote, some committee members
indicated they intended to further refine the bill by offering amendments on the
Senate floor. S. 758 was reported by the Armed Services Committee on June 5
(S.Rept. 80-239).
The bill was brought to the Senate floor by unanimous consent on July 7, 1947.
During two days of floor debate, arguments in favor of the bill were presented by
members of the Armed Services Committee. Among the opponents, Senator Edward
Robertson (R-WY), the third ranking majority member of the committee, voiced his
concern that the bill would concentrate too much power in the hands of the proposed
Secretary of National Security.
An amendment proposed by Senator Robert Taft (R-OH), clarifying the duties
of the National Security Council, was adopted. An amendment proposed by Senator
Joseph McCarthy (R-WI), prohibiting change in the status of the Marine Corps, was
defeated. The bill, as amended, passed the Senate by voice vote July 9, 1947.
Conferees were drawn from the reporting committees, seven from Armed
Services in the Senate (majority/minority ratio 4-3) and seven from Expenditures in
the Executive Departments in the House (4-3 ratio). The Senate adopted the
conference report by voice vote on July 24. The House followed suit on July 25
(H.Rept. 80-1051), and President Truman signed the bill into law on July 26 (P.L.
253, 61 Stat. 495). Pursuant to the effective date provisions in the statute, the
6Among those opposing the bill were Rep. W. Sterling Cole (R-NY), a member of the
Armed Services Committee, Rep. Harry Sheppard (D-CA), former chairman of the Navy
Appropriations subcommittee, and Rep. Edith Rogers (R-MA), chairman of the Veterans
Affairs Committee.
7For a discussion of the issues surrounding the jurisdictional dispute, and the rationale for
the referral decision, see Congressional Record, vol 93, Mar. 3, 1947, pp. 1599-1607.

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National Military Establishment came into being on September 18, 1947, the day
after the confirmation of James Forrestal as the new Secretary of Defense.
In 1949, the National Military Establishment was redesignated the Department
of Defense, and the secretary was given greater authority over the military
departments of the Army, Navy and Air Force. These modifications, supported by
Secretary Forrestal, were introduced as H.R. 5632 in the House (by Representative
Dewey Short (R-MO) on July 13, 1949) and S. 1269 in the Senate (by Senator
Millard Tydings (D-MD) on March 16, 1949). Extensive hearings were held by both
the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.
On May 12, the Senate Armed Services Committee reported an original bill, S.
1843. The Senate passed S. 1843, on May 26, 1949, and the House approved a less
sweeping version, H.R. 5632, on July 18. Conferees resolved most of the differences
in favor of the stronger Senate version of the legislation, and the conference report
was agreed to in the Senate on July 28, and in the House on August 2 (H.Rept. 80-
1142), clearing the measure for the President’s August 10 signature (P.L. 216, 63
Stat. 578).
Department of Health, Education and Welfare
President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed the creation of the Department of
Health, Education, and Welfare in Reorganization Plan No. 1, submitted to Congress
on March 12, 1953. The plan called for the creation of a Cabinet department that
would absorb the functions of the existing Federal Security Agency (FSA). Congress
affirmed the plan by adopting H.J.Res. 223, which the President signed into law
April 1, 1953 ( P.L. 13, 67 Stat. 18).

Under procedures mandated by the Reorganization Act of 1949 (63 Stat. 203),
reorganization plans were to take effect 60 days after submission unless either house
of Congress passed a resolution of disapproval. Language in H.J.Res. 223, introduced
March 12, 1953, by Representative Clare Hoffman (R-MI), chairman of the
Government Operations Committee, proposed to shorten this period, providing that
the plan would take effect 10 days after enactment.8 Consequently, the new
department officially came into being on April 11, 1953.
Proposals to consolidate health, education, and welfare activities had been
contemplated for several years. In 1947, the Senate Committee on Expenditures in
the Executive Departments reported a bill to reorganize FSA, but the Senate took no
further action. Similarly, in 1949 and 1950, President Harry S Truman submitted two
reorganization plans, one to create a Department of Welfare, and another to create a
Department of Health, Education, and Security. Both were disapproved by
Congress.9
8No action was required by Congress for the Reorganization Plan to go into effect. The joint
resolution was only necessary to provide an exception to the statutorily mandated 60-day
effective date requirement.
9On August 16, 1949, a resolution disapproving Reorganization Plan No. 1, creating the
(continued...)

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The ultimately successful consideration of HEW’s organic act was set in motion
by President Eisenhower’s February 2, 1953, State of the Union message, advocating
creation of the department. The formal reorganization plan was sent to Congress on
March 12. On March 16, the House Government Operations Committee and the
Subcommittee on Reorganization of the Senate Committee on Government
Operations examined the proposal in joint hearings. On March 17, the House
Government Operations Committee approved H.J.Res. 223, 17-12, and reported it
to the House (H.Rept. 83-166). The following day, March 18, the joint resolution
was considered under an open rule (H.Res.179), providing for 2 hours of general
debate, and passed the House 291-86.
The Senate Government Operations Committee considered the joint resolution
March 23, voting 12-1 to send it to the full Senate (S.Rept. 83-128). On March 30,
a motion to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution made by Majority
Leader Robert Taft (R-OH), was agreed to by voice vote. H.J.Res. 223 was debated
briefly on the Senate floor, then passed by voice vote. President Eisenhower signed
the joint resolution on April 1, and then nominated former Federal Security Agency
head Oveta Culp Hobby as the first secretary of the new department. Her nomination
was confirmed on April 10, and the department officially began operation pursuant
to the provisions of the joint resolution, on April 11, 1953.
The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was renamed the
Department of Health and Human Services on May 4, 1980, following the creation
of the new Department of Education. (Consideration of P.L. 96-88, the Department
of Education Organization Act, is detailed below).
Department of Housing and Urban Development
The Department of Housing and Urban Development was established by P.L.
89-174, 79 Stat. 667 (H.R. 6927), signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on
September 9, 1965. The legislation provided that the department was to be created
no later than November 8, 60 days following the date of enactment. The actual
implementation was postponed until January 13, 1966, following the completion of
a special study group report on the federal role in solving urban problems.
From 1961 to 1964, both President John F. Kennedy and President Johnson had
advanced proposals for the creation of a housing department. As approved in 1965,
the legislation basically elevated the Housing and Home Finance Agency (established
in 1947) to Cabinet-level status.
Bills embodying the administration’s proposals were introduced by
Representative Henry Reuss (D-WI) on March 23, 1965 (H.R. 6654), and by
Representative Dante Fascell (D-FL) on March 30 ( H.R. 6927). In the Senate, the
administration’s legislation was introduced by Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT) on
9(...continued)
Department of Welfare, was adopted by a 60-32 vote in the Senate. On July 10, 1950, a
resolution disapproving Reorganization Plan No. 27, creating the Department of Health,
Education, and Security, was adopted in the House by a 249-71 vote.

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March 25 (S. 1599). The House Government Operations Subcommittee on
Executive and Legislative Reorganization held two days of hearings on April 5 and
6 on H.R. 6654, H.R. 6927, and related bills.
The Government Operations Committee selected H.R. 6927 for further
consideration, voting 20-8 on May 11 to report the measure to the House (H.Rept.
89-337). On June 16, the House considered the bill under an open rule (H.Res. 419),
which provided for 2 hours of general debate, and passed it with amendments, by a
217-184 vote, after rejecting a minority substitute, H.R. 8222. This Republican
alternative, introduced by Representative Florence Dwyer (R-NJ) on June 6, 1965,
proposed establishing an Office of Urban Affairs and Community Development in
the Executive Office of the President, rather than a full Cabinet department.
The Senate Government Operations Subcommittee on Executive Reorganization
held 4 days of hearings on S. 1599 on March 31, April 1 and 2, and May 19. The bill
was approved by the full committee on July 30 by a 9- 4 vote (the chairman of the
committee, Senator John McClellan(D-AR), voting in the negative), and reported it
to the Senate August 2 (S.Rept. 89-536).
The measure was brought up on the floor by unanimous consent on August 10,
1965. Among the amendments adopted was a proposal by Senator John Sparkman
(D-AL) providing for the retention of the Federal Housing Administration. The
Senate subsequently passed H.R. 6927 on August 11, 57-33, after substituting the
provisions of S. 1599.
The conference committee included five members from the Senate Government
Operations Committee (3-2 ratio) and seven members from the House Government
Operations Committee (5-2 ratio). The conference report, H.Rept. 89-844, was filed
August 11. It was agreed to by voice vote and without debate in the Senate on
August 30 and in the House on August 31. The bill became law with President
Johnson’s signature on September 9, 1965.
Department of Transportation
The Department of Transportation was established by P.L. 89-670, 80 Stat. 931,
(H.R. 15963), enacted October 15, 1966. The department’s first official day of
operation was April 1, 1967. As early as 1936, a Senate select committee had
recommended the creation of a Department of Transportation. President Lyndon B.
Johnson formally proposed the creation of the department in his State of the Union
address on January 12, 1966, and sent a special message to Congress on March 2,
detailing his recommendations.
The administration bill to create a Department of Transportation was introduced
on March 2 by Representative Chet Holifield (D-CA) in the House (H.R. 13200) and
Senator Warren Magnuson (D-WA) in the Senate (S. 3010). Over the next three
months, the Subcommittee on Executive and Legislative Reorganization of the House
Government Operations Committee held 11 days of hearings on the proposal. During
the same time frame, nine days of hearings were conducted by the Senate Committee
on Government Operations.

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On June 22, the House subcommittee approved H.R. 13200 and forwarded it to
the Government Operations Committee. The full committee approved the bill on June
22 with an amendment in the nature of a substitute, and, on July 15, reported a clean
bill to the House (H.R. 15963, H.Rept. 89-1701). On August 30, the House took up
the bill under the provisions of an open rule (H.Res. 935), which provided for 4 hours
of general debate. The bill passed with amendments by a vote of 336-42.
In the Senate, S. 3010 was considered by the Government Operations Committee
and reported with amendments on September 27, 1966 (S.Rept. 89-1659). On the
floor, the bill was brought up for consideration by unanimous consent. After
substituting the provisions of its own bill, the Senate passed H. R. 15963 on September
29 by a vote of 64-2.
Six conferees from the House Government Operations Committee (4-2 ratio) and
five from the Senate Government Operations Committee (4-1 ratio) met to resolve the
differences in the two versions of the bill and filed the conference report on October
12, 1966 (H.Rept. 89-2236). On October 13, both the House and the Senate adopted
the conference report by voice vote, clearing the measure for the President.
Department of Energy
The Department of Energy was created by P.L. 95-91, 91 Stat. 565 (S. 826),
signed by President Jimmy Carter on August 4, 1977.10 President Carter formally
proposed creation of the new department five months earlier in a special message to
Congress on March 1, 1977. The plan was similar in many respects to President Gerald
R. Ford’s energy reorganization proposal submitted in the final month of his term.
President Richard M. Nixon had also offered plans to reorganize federal energy
agencies in 1971 and 1973.
In the House, several identical bills embodying the President’s proposal were
referred to the Government Operations Committee.11 The Legislation and National
Security Subcommittee held six days of hearings on H.R. 4263 and related bills in
March and April 1977. The subcommittee marked up the bill and reported a clean bill,
H.R. 6804, to the full committee.
Jurisdiction over the legislation had also been asserted by the Post Office and
Civil Service Committee,12 which held hearings at the subcommittee level and
10The Department of Energy officially began operations on October 1, 1977. Pursuant to
section 901 of the Department of Energy Organization Act, President Jimmy Carter issued
Executive Order 12009, prescribing October 1, 1977 as the effective date of the Act.
11From Apr. 25, 1967, to Jan. 3, 1979, House rules limited the number of cosponsors to 25
per bill, requiring the introduction of identical bills when the number of cosponsors
exceeded 25. In addition to H.R. 4263, the Department of Energy Act was introduced as
H.R. 4466, H.R. 4806, H.R. 4807, H.R. 4808, H.R. 5299, and H.R. 5761.
12In the 104th Cong., the jurisdiction of the Post Office and Civil Service Committee was
absorbed by the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight (formerly known as the
Committee on Government Operations, and now called the Committee on Government
(continued...)

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forwarded suggested amendments to the Government Operations Committee. On May
13, in a letter to the Speaker, the Post Office and Civil Service Committee requested
and received sequential referral of the legislation.13 H.R. 6804 was reported by
Government Operations on May 16, 1977 (H.Rept. 95-346, pt. 1), and by Post Office
and Civil Service on May 24 (H.Rept. 95-346, pt. 2).
On June 2, the House considered H.R. 6804 under an open rule (H.Res. 603).14
The majority of the 34 amendments considered were noncontroversial, and were
adopted by voice votes. On the following day, June 3, the House passed H.R. 6804 by
a 310-20 vote, then subsequently passed S. 826 after amending it to contain the
language of H.R. 6804.
The Senate version of the proposed energy reorganization, S. 826, was introduced
March 1, 1977, by Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT). Twelve days of hearings were
held during March and April 1977 by the Governmental Affairs Committee (formerly
the Government Operations Committee, renamed Governmental Affairs, February 4,
1977). An amended version of S. 826 was reported by the Committee on
Governmental Affairs on May 4 (S.Rept. 95-1649).
The bill was brought up for consideration in the Senate by unanimous consent on
May 18, 1977. Seventeen amendments, making relatively minor changes, were
proposed. All but three of these were adopted by voice vote without significant
challenge. The bill as amended was then passed by a vote of 74-10.
Conferees were drawn from the two reporting committees in the House, 10 from
Government Operations (7-3 ratio) and three from Post Office and Civil Service (2-1
ratio). In the Senate, eight conferees came from the Committee on Governmental
Affairs (5-3 ratio) and three from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (1-2
ratio). Senator Henry Jackson (D-WA), chairman of the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources, requested that the bill be referred to his committee after the
Governmental Affairs Committee had completed its consideration. No sequential
referral was made, but three members of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee
were appointed as conferees (in addition to Senator Jackson and Senator Lee Metcalf
(D-MT), who served on both committees).
The conference report on S. 826 was agreed to on August 2 in the House by a 353-
57 vote and in the Senate by a 76-14 vote (H.Rept. 95-539; S.Rept. 95-367).
12(...continued)
Reform).
13A full chronology of the Post Office and Civil Service Committee’s efforts to obtain
sequential referral appears in H.Rept. 95-346, pt. 1, pp. 3-4.
14The resolution provided for 3 hours of general debate, 2 ½ hours to be equally divided and
controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Government
Operations, and one-half hour to be equally divided and controlled by the chairman and
ranking minority member of the Committee on Post Office and Civil Service.

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Department of Education
The Department of Education Organization Act, P.L. 96-88, 93 Stat. 668 (S.210),
approved October 17, 1979, consolidated education components from the Department
of Health, Education, and Welfare and other executive departments into a single
Cabinet department15. The law also renamed the remaining components of HEW as
the Department of Health and Human Services. Federal education agencies had existed
at the subcabinet level as early as 1867, but, as federal education programs expanded,
pressure to create a separate education department grew.
In the 95th Congress, bills proposing a Department of Education were introduced
in the House (H.R. 13778) on August 8, 1978, by Representative Jack Brooks (D-TX),
and in the Senate (S. 991) on March 14, 1977, by Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT).
The Senate bill was reported from the Governmental Affairs Committee on August 9,
1978 (S.Rept. 95-1078), and passed the Senate 72-11 on September 28. In the House,
H.R. 13778 cleared the Government Operations Committee on August 25 (H.Rept. 95-
1531), but stalled on the floor. Opponents concerned about the impact of the bill on
independent local schools successfully blocked its consideration in the waning days of
the 95th Congress.
In the 96th Congress, efforts to create the new department were renewed with the
introduction of S. 210, by Senator Ribicoff, chairman of the Governmental Affairs
Committee, on January 24, 1979. The House bill, H.R. 2444, was introduced by
Representative Brooks, chairman of the Government Operations Committee, on
February 27. The House Government Operations Subcommittee on Legislation and
National Security, held three days of hearings on H.R. 2444, March 26 and 27 and
April 5. The Senate bill, which was similar to the measure approved in the previous
Congress, was the subject of three days of hearings before the Senate Governmental
Affairs Committee, February 6-8.
S. 210 was reported by the Governmental Affairs Committee on March 27, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute (S.Rept. 96-49). The bill was called up by
unanimous consent on April 5, with consideration continuing on April 9, 10, 26 and
30. On April 26, a time agreement was reached, specifying debate limits on all
remaining amendments.16 A controversial school prayer amendment adopted on April
5 was subsequently stripped from the bill. Other amendments on sex education,
unionization of teachers, and affirmative action were defeated by roll-call votes.
Among the amendments adopted was one offered by Senator Dennis DeConcini (D-
AZ) to establish an Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Affairs. The bill as
amended passed the Senate 72-21 on April 30, 1979.
On May 2, H.R. 2444 was reported by the Government Operations Committee by
a single vote, 20-19 (H.Rept. 96-143). The bill was considered on the floor under the
provisions of an open rule (H.Res. 299), with 3 hours provided for general debate. A
15The Department of Education was officially established on May 4, 1980. Pursuant to the
provisions in section 601 of the Department of Education Organization Act, President Carter
issued Executive Order 12212, designating May 4, 1980, as the effective date of the Act.
16Congressional Record, vol. 125, Apr. 26, 1979, pp. 8823-8825.

CRS-11
series of amendments on subjects such as busing, racial quotas, abortion, and school
prayer were agreed to. The final bill passed the House on July 11, by a four-vote
margin, 210-206.
Five conferees appointed from the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee (3-2
ratio) and nine from the House Government Operations Committee (6-3 ratio) reached
an agreement that dropped most of the House provisions. The Senate adopted the
conference report (S.Rept. 96-326) on September 24 by a vote of 69-22. On September
27, the House followed suit, agreeing to the conference report (H.Rept. 96-459) by a
vote of 215-201.
Department of Veterans Affairs
The Department of Veterans Affairs was created by P. L. 100-527, 102 Stat. 2635
(H.R. 3471), which upgraded the Veterans Administration to Cabinet status. The
Department of Veterans Affairs Act was signed by President Ronald Reagan on
October 25, 1988, and the redesignation became effective on March 15, 1989.
Proposals to make the Veterans Administration an executive department had been
introduced in the 88th through the 100th Congresses. President Reagan’s public
endorsement of the idea on November 10, 1987, on the eve of Veterans Day, provided
added momentum to the effort.
On the same day that the President made his endorsement, the House Government
Operations Committee approved H.R. 3471 to create a Veterans Affairs Department.
Introduced October 13, 1987, by committee Chairman Jack Brooks (D-TX), the
measure was reported to the House on November 16, 1987 (H.Rept. 100-435), and
passed the House on November 17, under suspension of the rules, by a vote of 399-17.
Related legislation, S. 533, was introduced in the Senate February 17, 1987, by
Senator Strom Thurmond (R-SC), a senior minority member of both the Armed
Services and Veterans Affairs Committees. The Senate Governmental Affairs
Committee held hearings on the measure December 9, 1987, and March 15 and 28,
1988.
The Governmental Affairs Committee marked up the bill April 14 and ordered it
reported by a 9-0 vote. As reported, the bill incorporated an amendment in the nature
of a substitute offered by Governmental Affairs Committee Chair John Glenn (D-OH),
which made significant changes to the bill originally introduced by Senator Thurmond.
The bill was reported to the Senate on May 12 (S.Rept. 100-342).
On July 11, 1988, the Senate began consideration of S. 533 under the terms of a
unanimous consent agreement.17 The agreement limited debate on the bill to 2 hours,
and made in order specified amendments. On July 12, 1988, the Senate passed S. 533,
adopting an amendment offered by Senator Alan Cranston (D-CA) to establish certain
positions within the Veterans Benefit Administration. Amendments to change the
17The text of the unanimous consent agreement appears at: Congressional Record, vol. 134,
June 28, 1988, p. 16176.

CRS-12
effective date of the Act, and to allow limited judicial review of VA compensation
cases, were tabled.
The following day, July 12, the Senate took up the House bill. The Senate
inserted the amended text of S. 533 as a substitute, and then passed H. R. 3471 by a
vote of 84-11. Differences between the House- and Senate-passed versions of the bill
were resolved in conference. The House conference delegation comprised eight
members from the Government Operations Committee (5-3 ratio) and three from the
Veterans Affairs Committee (2-1 ratio). Senate conferees came from the
Governmental Affairs Committee (seven, 4-3 ratio) and Veterans Affairs Committee
(two, 1-1 ratio). The conference report was agreed to by voice vote on October 6 in the
House (H.Rept. 100-1036) and October 18 in the Senate.
Proposals to Create Additional Cabinet Departments
Members of Congress regularly propose the establishment of new executive
departments or reorganization of existing ones. For instance, in the 107th Congress
H.R. 2459, introduced July 7, 2001, by Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), seeks
to create a Department of Peace. It was referred to the House Government Reform,
International Relations, Judiciary, and Education and the Workforce Committees.
In recent years, similar efforts have been mounted to establish:
! a Department of National Drug Control Policy (S. 1690, 105th Congress,
introduced by Senator Lauch Faircloth (R-NC), referred to the Governmental
Affairs Committee);
! a Department of Trade (H.R. 2325, 104th Congress, introduced by
Representative Toby Roth (R-WI), referred to National Security, Banking and
Financial Services, International Relations, Government Reform and Oversight,
and Ways and Means Committees);
! a Department of Science, Energy and Technology (H.R. 1300, 103rd Congress,
introduced by Representative Robert Walker (R-PA), referred to the
Government Operations Committee); and
! a Department of Arts and Humanities (H.R. 383, 102nd Congress, introduced by
Representative Mary Rose Oakar (D-OH), referred to the Government
Operations Committee).
For the most part, these initiatives have not made significant progress in terms of
formal congressional consideration. In each of the above cited examples, the bills were
referred to committee, but received no further action.
One exception to this pattern has been the persistent effort to elevate the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Cabinet status. Such proposals were first
introduced in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Both President Bill Clinton and President
George H.W. Bush advocated executive department status for EPA. In 1993, one such
bill, S. 171, introduced by Senator John Glenn (D-OH), passed the Senate, but received
no House action. In the 107th Congress, H.R. 2438, the Department of Environmental
Protection Act, introduced July 10, 2001, by Representative Sherwood Boehlert (R-

CRS-13
NY), was referred to the House Committee on Government Reform. In the Senate, a
similar bill, S.159, introduced by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), was the subject of
a July 24, 2001, hearing before the Committee on Governmental Affairs.

CRS-14
Table 1: Key Legislative Documents and Dates Related to the Creation of Cabinet Departments, 1947 to 1988
Public Law
House Bill
Senate Bill
Committee Reports
Initial
Conference
Conference
(Special rule
Passage
Report
Report
if applicable)
Adopted
Department of Veterans
P.L. 100-527
H.R. 3471
S. 533
H.Rept. 100-435 (Nov. 16, 1987)
House
H.Rept. 100-1036
House
Affairs
Oct. 25, 1988
Oct. 13, 1987
Feb. 17, 1987
Government Operations
Nov. 17, 1987
Oct. 6, 1988
S.Rept. 100-342 (May, 12, 1988)
Senate
Senate
Government Affairs
July 12, 1988
Oct. 18, 1988
Department of Education
P.L. 96-88
H.R. 2444
S. 210
H.Rept 96-143 (May, 14, 1979)
House
H.Rept. 96-459
House
Oct. 17, 1979
Feb. 27, 1979
Jan. 24, 1979
Government Operations
July 11, 1979
S.Rept. 96-326
Sept. 27, 1979
(H.Res. 299)
S.Rept. 96-49 (Mar. 27, 1979)
Senate
Senate
Governmental Affairs
April 30, 1979
Sept. 24, 1979
Department of Energy
P.L. 95-91
H.R. 6804
S. 826
H.Rept 95-346, Pt. 1&2
House
H.Rept. 95-539
House
Aug. 4, 1977
May, 2, 1977
Mar. 1, 1977
Government Operations (May 16, 1977)
June 3, 1977
S.Rept. 95-367
Aug. 2, 1977
(H.Res. 603)
Post Office and Civil Service (May 24, 1977)
Senate
Senate
S.Rept. 95-164 (May 14, 1977)
May 18, 1977
Aug. 2, 1977
Governmental Affairs
Department of Transportation
P.L. 89-670
H.R. 15963
S. 3010
H.Rept. 89-1701 ((July 15, 1966)
House
H.Rept. 89-2236
House
Oct. 15, 1966
June 27, 1966
Mar. 2. 1966
Government Operations
Aug. 30, 1966
Oct. 13, 1966
(H.Res. 935)
S.Rept. 89-1659 (Sept. 27, 1966)
Senate
Senate
Government Operations
Sept. 29, 1966
Oct. 13, 1966
Department of Housing and
P.L. 89-174
H.R. 6927
S. 1599
H.Rept. 89-337 (May 11, 1965)
House
H.Rept. 89-884
House
Urban Development
Sept. 9, 1965
Mar. 30. 1965
Mar. 25, 1965
Government Operations
June 16, 1965
Aug. 31, 1965
(H.Res. 419)
S.Rept. 89-536 (Aug. 2, 1965)
Senate
Senate
Government Operations
Aug. 11, 1965
Aug. 30, 1965
Department of Health,
P.L. 13,
H.J.Res. 223
H.Rept. 166 (Mar. 17, 1953)
House
Education and Welfare
Apr. 1, 1953
Mar. 12, 1953
Government Operations
Mar. 18, 1953
(H.Res. 179),
S.Rept. 128 (Mar. 23, 1953)
Senate
--
--
affirmed Reorganization Plan #
Government Operations
Mar. 30, 1953
1 of 1953
Department of Defense
P.L. 253
H.R. 4214
S. 758
H.Rept. 961 (July 16, 1947)
House
H.Rept. 80-1051
House
July 26, 1947
July 15, 1947
Mar. 3, 1947
Expenditures in the Executive Departments
July 19, 1947
July 25, 1947
S.Rept. 239 (June 5, 1947)
Senate
Senate
Armed Services
July 9, 1947
July 24, 1947