Executive Order 2717 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 2717—Assigning Quarantine Duties in the Virgin Islands to the Treasury Department

•

Thursday, September 27, 1917

•

1 min read (285 words)

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.

This executive order, signed by President Woodrow Wilson on 1917-09-27, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Assigning Quarantine Duties in the Virgin Islands to the Treasury Department." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.

Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪ Formal executive instruction issued by the President establishing official administrative policy on Assigning Quarantine Duties in the Virgin Islands to the Treasury Department.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Public Health & Medical Institutions 🏛️ Financial Institutions & Monetary Authorities

Total Words

285

1,828 characters

Estimated Read Time

1 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

23.4

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

+0.02

Framers' Alignment index

📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 2717, Woodrow Wilson (Sep 27, 1917). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-2717-assigning-quarantine-duties-the-virgin-islands-the-treasury.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →

Whereas, an Act of Congress approved June 19, 1906, provides "that the Secretary of the Treasury shall have the control, direction, and management of all quarantine stations, grounds, and anchorages, established by authority of the United States * * *." Now, therefore, I, Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States, by virtue of the authority in me vested, and pursuant to Section 1 of the Act approved March 3, 1917, entitled "An Act to provide a temporary government for the West Indies Islands, acquired by the United States from Denmark, etc.," do hereby order that the provisions of the Act of Congress approved February 15, 1893, entitled "An Act granting additional quarantine powers and imposing additional duties upon the Marine-Hospital Service," and all rules and regulations heretofore prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury under this Act are to be given full force and effect in the islands of St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John, West Indies, and all public property of the former government of the Virgin Islands, ceded heretofore to the United States, consisting of quarantine reservations, buildings, wharves, docks connected therewith, and equipment, be, and hereby are, taken for uses and purposes of the United States, and the Secretary of the Treasury, through the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service, is hereby charged with all administrative duties relating to said quarantine service, and the Secretary of the Treasury shall have estimates prepared by the Surgeon General of the Public Health Service, and submitted to Congress for an appropriation for the maintenance of said quarantine service, and securement of reservations where necessary, and additional facilities for the proper enforcement of quarantine preventive measures. WOODROW WILSON THE WHITE HOUSE, September 27, 1917.