Executive Order 11781—Providing for an Orderly Termination of the Economic Stabilization Program

To provide for an orderly transition from mandatory controls,, for the continuation of enforcement procedures under the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, with respect to acts committed prior to May 1, 1974, and for the continuation of monitoring and other functions of the Cost of Living Council, I am issuing this Executive Order to be effective only from May 1, 1974, through June 30, 1974, At midnight on April 30, 1974, the authority contained in the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, to impose a system of mandatory controls expired.

The expiration of continuing mandatory controls authority does not preclude the Cost of Living Council from continuing to consider matters properly before it that relate to wages paid for work performed prior to May 1, 1974, and prices charged prior to May 1, 1974. The Council shall continue to receive and consider requests for approval of wage and salary increases or for exceptions from applicable wage and salary guidelines with respect to pay adjustments for work performed prior to May 1, 1974, and shall continue to challenge and review wages and salaries paid for work performed prior to May 1, 1974, as appropriate, and to the extent permitted by law. The Council shall continue to receive and consider requests for exceptions from price regulations and orders with respect to prices in effect prior to May 1, 1974, and shall continue to review price adjustments made prior to May 1, 1974, as appropriate and to the extent permitted by law.

The Cost of Living Council will be terminating its work, and its staff will be redeployed over the next two months. Given the extraordinary sacrifice, contribution, and outstanding work this staff has provided the American people, it is incumbent upon us to make a substantial effort to recognize and retain those Cost of Living Council people who desire to stay within the Federal Government. Council staff have skills which are in continuous demand in all Federal agencies and represent a broad spectrum of highly competent professional and clerical talent. It is my desire that departments and agencies receive returning career employees with reemployment rights at the same salary and grade obtained while serving at the Council, to the maximum extent possible. This also applies to Internal Revenue Service employees who have served in the Economic Stabilization Program. In addition to returning career Civil Service Cost of Living Council employees with Federal reemployment rights, we must provide an opportunity for those Council employees who are serving under Emergency Indefinite status to remain in the Federal Government if they so desire. These employees will also need favorable consideration for available vacancies in the next two months, and should, to the maximum extent possible, be given salaries commensurate with those attained while serving at the Council.

I am directing each Federal agency to participate in this placement effort by giving the highest attention to filling agency vacancies quickly with qualified Cost of Living Council employees who will be referred by the Council or the Civil Service Commission. To assure the fullest cooperation in this important effort, I have designated the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission to be directly responsible to me for this placement effort. He will ensure that every effort is made to identify and refer qualified Cost of Living Council employees to fill existing vacancies, and will report to me monthly concerning this placement process.

In order to accomplish these purposes, and by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the United States, including the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, it is hereby ordered as follows:

SECTION 1. (a) The Cost of Living Council (hereinafter referred to as the "Council"), as established by section 2 of Executive Order No. 11615 of August 15, 1971, and continued by Executive Order No. 11695 of January 11, 1973, and Executive Order No. 11730 of July 18, 1973, is hereby continued through June 30, 1974. The Secretary of the Treasury serving on April 30, 1974, shall continue to serve as Chairman of the Council so long as he shall serve as Secretary of the Treasury. The Director of the Cost of Living Council shall thereafter serve as Chairman of the Council. The Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers shall continue to serve as Vice Chairman of the Council.

(b) All the powers and duties conferred upon the President by the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, and delegated to the Chairman of the Cost of Living Council by Executive Order No. 11695, including the powers necessary to take appropriate actions with respect to any action or pending proceedings, civil or criminal, not finally determined on April 30, 1974, or with respect to any act committed prior to May 1, 1974, are, to the extent necessary, hereby continued through June 30, 1974.

SEC. 2. The Chairman of the Cost of Living Council shall provide for the orderly conclusion of the Council's activities through June 30, 1974. To this end the Chairman shall make appropriate provision for completion of any reports required by the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended; for an appropriate compilation of the records, data and any other material in the possession of the Council; and for the establishment of an archive for Economic Stabilization Program documents.

SEC. 3. The Chairman of the Cost of Living Council shall provide for the continuation of any action or pending proceedings, civil or criminal, not finally determined prior to May 1, 1974, as appropriate. The Chairman shall continue to receive reports and review pay adjustments with respect to work performed prior to May 1, 1974, and price adjustments with respect to prices charged prior to May 1, 1974, and take appropriate remedial action where he finds such adjustments were in violation of applicable Economic Stabilization Regulations.

SEC. 4. The Chairman of the Cost of Living Council shall, through June 30, 1974, monitor the decontrol commitments entered into by various firms at the time controls were eliminated and shall take all appropriate action to ensure that the commitments are honored.

SEC. 5. The Chairman of the Cost of Living Council is hereby authorized, for the period May 1, 1974, through June 30, 1974, to continue to:

(a) Review the programs and activities of Federal departments and agencies and the private sector which may have adverse effects on supply and cause increases in prices, and make recommendations for changes in such programs and activities to increase supply and restrain prices;

(b) Review industrial capacity, demand, and supply in various sectors of the economy, working with the industrial groups concerned and appropriate governmental agencies to encourage price restraint;

(c) Establish procedures to work with labor and management in the various sectors of the economy having special economic problems as well as with appropriate Government agencies, to improve the structure of collective bargaining and the performance of those sectors in restraining prices;

(d) Develop plans and procedures to improve wage and price data bases for various sectors of the economy in order to improve the factual basis for collective bargaining and to encourage price restraint;

(e) Focus attention on the need to increase productivity in both the public and private sectors of the economy;

(f) Monitor the economy as a whole, including such matters as wages, costs, productivity, prices, sales, profits, imports, and exports.

SEC. 6. Nothing in this order shall be construed as authorizing the imposition or reimposition of any mandatory economic controls with respect to prices, rents, wages, salaries, corporate dividends, interest rates, or any similar transfer other than on the basis of the authority provided in sections 2 and 3 of this order with respect to enforcement activity related to the period prior to May 1, 1974.

SEC. 7. The Chairman of the Cost of Living Council, in carrying out the provisions of this order, may provide for the establishment of committees, action groups, and other comparable groups, and may take such other actions as he determines to be necessary or appropriate, through June 30, 1974.

SEC. 8. The Construction Industry Stabilization Committee (hereinafter referred to as the CISC) established by section 2 of Executive Order 11588, of March 29, 1971, and continued by Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973, is hereby continued through June 30, 1974, and shall continue to act as an agency of the United States. The CISC shall continue to perform such functions with respect to the stabilization of wages and salaries in the construction industry as the Chairman of the Council may delegate to it, for purposes of accomplishing the orderly conclusion of the activities of the CISC through June 30, 1974. The craft dispute boards (hereinafter referred to as "boards") established by associations of contractors and national and international unions under section 2 of Executive Order 11588 and continued by Executive Order 11695 are hereby continued through June 30, 1974. Each board shall be composed of appropriate labor and management representatives. The boards shall continue to perform such functions with respect to the stabilization of wages and salaries in the construction industry as the Chairman of the Council may prescribe for purposes of accomplishing the orderly conclusion of the activities of the CISC through June 30, 1974.

SEC. 9. The Cost of Living Council Committee on Health established by section 6 of Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973, is hereby continued through June 30, 1974. The Committee on Health shall be composed of the Director of the Council, who shall be its Chairman, the Vice Chairman of the Council, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and such others as the President may, from time to time, designate. The Committee shall continue to review Government activities significantly influencing health care expenses and make recommendations to the Chairman of the Council concerning these matters.

SEC. 10. The Cost of Living Council Committee on Food established by section 7 of Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973, is hereby continued through June 30, 1974. The Cost of Living Council Committee on Food shall be composed of the Director of the Council, the Vice Chairman of the Council, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and such others as the President may, from time to time designate. The Committee shall continue to review Government activities significantly affecting food costs and prices and make recommendations to the Chairman of the Council concerning these matters.

SEC. 11. The Labor-Management Advisory Committee established by section 8 of Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973, is hereby continued through June 30, 1974. The Labor-Management Advisory Committee shall be composed of such members as the President may, from time to time, designate. The Committee shall continue to provide advice for improving the collective bargaining process and for assuring wage and salary settlements consistent with gains in productivity and the goal of stemming the rate of inflation.

SEC. 12. The following committees are hereby abolished:

Effective May 31, 1974:

(a) The Health Industry Advisory Committee established by section 6 of Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973;

Effective immediately:

(b) (1) The Food Industry Advisory Committee established by section 7 of Executive Order 11695;

(2) The Committee on Interest and Dividends established by section 9 of Executive Order 11627 and continued by section 9 of Executive Order 11695.

The Chairman of the Council shall make appropriate provision for the disposition of the records, property, personnel, and funds relating to the committees abolished by this section.

SEC. 13. This order does not affect any authority exercised by the Federal Energy Office with respect to pricing and allocation of crude oil, residual fuel oil, and refined petroleum products (as defined in the Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973), pursuant to the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, the Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973, Executive Order 11748 of December 4, 1973, or Cost of Living Council Order No. 47, as amended.

SEC. 14. Executive Order 11695, of January 11, 1973, Executive Order 11723, of June 13, 1973, and Executive Order 11730, of July 18, 1973, are hereby superseded except to the extent necessary to carry out the functions and duties provided by this order.

RICHARD NIXON

The White House,

May 1, 1974.