Facilitation of a Presidential Transition

Executive Order 13727 of May 6, 2016

Facilitation of a Presidential Transition

                By the authority vested in me as President by the
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of
                America, including section 7301 of title 5, United
                States Code, and the Presidential Transition Act of
                1963, as amended, and to assist the Presidential
                transition, it is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. The peaceful transition of power has
                long been a hallmark of American democracy. It is the
                policy of the United States to undertake all reasonable
                efforts to ensure that Presidential transitions are
                well-coordinated and effective, without regard to party
                affiliation.

                Sec. 2. Establishment of the White House Transition
                Coordinating Council. (a) To facilitate the
                Presidential transition, including assisting and
                supporting the transition efforts of the transition
                teams of eligible candidates, there is established a
                White House Transition Coordinating Council.

                    (b) The White House Transition Coordinating Council
                shall be composed of the following officials or their
                designees:

(i) Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, who shall serve as
Chair;

(ii) Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations,
who shall serve as Vice Chair;

(iii) Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff for
Implementation;

(iv) Counsel to the President;

(v) Assistant to the President for Presidential Personnel;

(vi) Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs;

(vii) Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and
Counterterrorism;

(viii) Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and Director,
National Economic Council;

(ix) Director of National Intelligence;

(x) Director of the Office of Management and Budget;

(xi) Administrator of General Services;

(xii) Federal Transition Coordinator;

(xiii) the transition representative for each eligible candidate, who shall
serve in an advisory capacity; and

(xiv) any other executive branch official the President determines
appropriate.

                    (c) The White House Transition Coordinating Council
                shall:

(i) provide guidance to executive departments and agencies (agencies) and
the Federal Transition Coordinator regarding preparations for the
Presidential transition, including succession planning and preparation of
briefing materials;

(ii) facilitate communication and information sharing between the
transition representatives of eligible candidates and senior employees in
agencies and the Executive Office of the President, including the provision
of information relevant to facilitating the personnel aspects of a
Presidential transition and such other information that, in the Council's
judgment,

is useful and appropriate, as long as providing such information is not
otherwise prohibited by law; and

(iii) prepare and host interagency emergency preparedness and response
exercises.

                    (d) In order to obtain a wide range of facts and
                information on prior transitions and best practices,
                the White House Transition Coordinating Council, its
                members, or their designees may seek information from
                private individuals, including individuals in outside
                organizations, who have significant experience or
                expertise in Presidential transitions. The White House
                Transition Coordinating Council, its members, or their
                designees shall endeavor to obtain such facts and
                information from individuals representing a range of
                bipartisan or nonpartisan viewpoints. If the White
                House Transition Coordinating Council, its members, or
                their designees find it necessary to seek advice from
                private individuals or outside organizations, such
                counsel should be sought in a manner that seeks
                individual advice and does not involve collective
                judgment or deliberation.

                Sec. 3. Establishment of the Agency Transition
                Directors Council. (a) To implement the guidance
                provided by the White House Transition Coordinating
                Council and to coordinate transition activities across
                agencies, there is established an Agency Transition
                Directors Council.

                    (b) The Agency Transition Directors Council shall
                be composed of the following officials or their
                designees:

(i) Federal Transition Coordinator, who shall serve as Co-Chair;

(ii) Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget,
who shall serve as Co-Chair;

(iii) a senior career representative from each agency described in section
901(b)(1) of title 31, United States Code, the Office of Personnel
Management, the Office of Government Ethics, and the National Archives and
Records Administration whose responsibilities include leading Presidential
transition efforts within the agency;

(iv) during a year in which a Presidential election will be held, a
transition representative for each eligible candidate, who shall serve in
an advisory capacity;

(v) a senior career representative from any other agency determined by the
Co-Chairs to be an agency that has significant responsibilities relating to
the Presidential transition process; and

(vi) other senior employees serving in the Executive Office of the
President, as determined by the President.

                    (c) The Agency Transition Directors Council shall:

(i) ensure the Federal Government has an integrated strategy for addressing
interagency challenges and responsibilities around Presidential transitions
and turnover of non-career appointees;

(ii) coordinate transition activities among the Executive Office of the
President, agencies, and the transition team of eligible candidates and the
President-elect and Vice-President-elect;

(iii) draw on guidance provided by the White House Transition Coordinating
Council and lessons learned from previous Presidential transitions in
carrying out its duties;

(iv) assist the Federal Transition Coordinator in identifying and carrying
out his or her responsibilities relating to a Presidential transition;

(v) provide guidance to agencies in gathering briefing materials and
information relating to the Presidential transition that may be requested
by eligible candidates;

(vi) ensure materials and information described in subparagraph (v) of this
subsection are prepared not later than November 1 of the year during which
a Presidential election is held;

(vii) ensure agencies adequately prepare career employees who are
designated to fill non-career positions during a Presidential transition;
and

(viii) consult with the President's Management Council, or any successor
thereto, in carrying out its duties.

                    (d) The Agency Transition Directors Council shall
                meet:

(i) subject to subparagraph (ii) of this subsection, not less than once per
year; and

(ii) during the period beginning on the date that is 6 months before a
Presidential election and ending on the date on which the President-elect
is inaugurated, on a regular basis as necessary to carry out its duties and
authorities.

                Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
                shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to a department or agency, or the head
thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

                    (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
                applicable law and subject to the availability of
                appropriations.
                    (c) The terms “eligible candidate,” “Federal
                Transition Coordinator,” and “Presidential election”
                shall have the same meaning as those terms used in the
                Presidential Transition Act of 1963, as amended. The
                term “President's Management Council” shall have the
                same meaning as that term is used in the Presidential
                Memorandum of July 11, 2001.
                    (d) This order is intended only to facilitate the
                transition and is not intended to, and does not, create
                any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
                enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
                the United States, its departments, agencies, or
                entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
                other person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    May 6, 2016.