ExecutiveOrdersEO
EO 13378Executive OrderG.W. Bush · R

Executive Order 13378

Amendments to Executive Order 12788 Relating to the Defense Economic Adjustment Program

This executive order updates the Defense Economic Adjustment Program by expanding its scope to explicitly include business assistance alongside communities and workers affected by defense base closures. It also streamlines the Economic Adjustment Committee by removing two obsolete agency positions (Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and FEMA Director), clarifies leadership roles with Defense as chair and Labor/Commerce as vice chairs, and adds a new objective to resolve regulatory issues hindering encroachment prevention and local economic adjustment.

Federal Register Open PDF 70 FR 28413

Key directives

  • Revise section 2 of EO 12788 to add business assistance and encroachment prevention as program goals
  • Amend section 3(c) to add 'businesses' to assisted entities
  • Add new section 3(n) to encourage resolution of regulatory issues impeding encroachment prevention and economic adjustment
  • Delete Arms Control and Disarmament Agency Director from Committee membership
  • Delete FEMA Director from Committee membership
  • Designate Defense Secretary (or designee) as Committee chair
  • Designate Labor and Commerce Secretaries as Vice Chairmen with specified acting authority

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

  • Removal of Arms Control and Disarmament Agency Director from Committee
  • Removal of FEMA Director from Committee
  • Defense Secretary designated as Committee chair
  • Labor and Commerce Secretaries designated as Vice Chairmen

Near term (90d)

  • Committee renumbering and operational adjustments
  • Implementation of expanded business assistance authority

Long term

  • Potential shift in encroachment prevention approach through regulatory resolution
  • Structural changes to defense economic adjustment program implementation

Risks & tensions

  • No explicit deadlines create implementation uncertainty
  • Removal of FEMA Director may reduce emergency response coordination for community disasters related to base closures
  • Expansion to 'businesses' is vague—scope of eligible businesses undefined
  • New regulatory resolution objective (3(n)) lacks enforcement mechanism; 'encourage' is soft language
  • Reorganization of Committee leadership may shift prioritization from labor/community focus toward defense department interests
Executive Order 13378: Amendments to Executive Order 12788 Relating to the Defense Economic Adjustment Program · Executive Orders