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Agency Scope

Any law or policy generally sets requirements for a specific group of those agencies. The following groups are the most commonly used.

Note: Although the Department of Defense is generally included in the listings below, in many cases they will have specific carveouts in the laws due to national defense concerns. Similarly, the intelligence agencies may have specific exemptions.

Executive Agencies

In most cases, this can generally be considered “all agencies” (with some specific exceptions). This is probably the most frequently-used grouping for most law and policy.

Defined in 41 U.S.C. § 403, this includes Executive Departments, Military Departments, Independent Agencies, and Wholly Owned Government Corporations.

CFO Act Agencies

In practical usage, these are also called the “large agencies,” (though SBA is actually pretty small with only 3000 or so permanent federal staff, less than some Small Agencies). This is another frequently-used grouping, and these are the agencies that get the most attention from White House offices for oversight.

Defined in 31 U.S.C. § 901, these are the agencies covered by the Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–576). This is one of the most common groupings, and currently consists of 24 agencies, including all of the Executive Departments. Most policies or laws that do not refer to all Executive Agencies will only cover these agencies, for example FITARA only covers these agencies, and the Federal Chief Information Officers Council (CIO Council) is comprised of the CIOs of these agencies.

It’s important to note that the White House is not considered a CFO Act Agency. In practice senior White House officials from OMB will often sit as the chair on governing bodies such as the CIO Council and CISO Council. However, OMB, OSTP, and the other White House Offices are not subject to CFO Act Agency-policies - and thus are often exempt from the requirements they issue for other agencies.

  • The Department of Agriculture (USDA)
  • The Department of Commerce (DOC)
  • The Department of Defense (DOD)
  • The Department of Education (Ed)
  • The Department of Energy (DOE)
  • The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
  • The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
  • The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
  • The Department of the Interior (DOI)
  • The Department of Justice (DOJ)
  • The Department of Labor (DOL)
  • The Department of State (DOS)
  • The Department of Transportation (DOT)
  • The Department of the Treasury (USDT)
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
  • The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
  • The Agency for International Development (USAID)
  • The General Services Administration (GSA)
  • The National Science Foundation (NSF)
  • The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
  • The Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
  • The Small Business Administration (SBA)
  • The Social Security Administration (SSA)

Small Agencies

The small agencies are the other, non-Cabinet independent agencies. There are many of them, but for the most part they are all very small, with only a few hundred to a few thousand employees. These agencies are frequently not included in reporting requirements and get far less attention from the White House offices.

The following agencies make up the (Small Agency Council)[https://www.sac.gov/about/members.htm]. Note that USAID appears in this list, though they are a (small) CFO Act agency.

  • Administrative Office of U.S. Courts (AOUSC)
  • Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (AC/HP)
  • African Development Foundation (ADF)
  • American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC)
  • Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC)
  • Appraisal Subcommittee of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council
  • Armed Forces Retirement Home (AFRH)
  • Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation (GSF)
  • Broadcasting Board of Governors
  • Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation
  • Commission on Fine Arts (CFA)
  • Committee for Purchase from People Who are Blind or Severely Disabled
  • Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
  • Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
  • Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
  • Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS)
  • Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA)
  • Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB)
  • Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC)
  • Delta Regional Authority
  • Denali Commission
  • Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
  • Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM BANK)
  • Farm Credit Administration (FCA)
  • Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation
  • Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
  • Federal Election Commission (FEC)
  • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
  • Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)
  • Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA)
  • Federal Maritime Commission (FMC)
  • Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS)
  • Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC)
  • Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB)
  • Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
  • Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council
  • Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation (HTSF)
  • Holocaust Memorial Museum (US/HHM)
  • Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
  • Inter-American Foundation (IAF)
  • International Boundary and Water Commission
  • James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation (JMMFF)
  • Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission (JUSFC)
  • John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
  • Marine Mammal Commission (MMC)
  • Merit System Protection Board (MSPB)
  • Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC)
  • National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
  • National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC)
  • National Council on Disability (NCD)
  • National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)
  • National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)
  • National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)
  • National Gallery of Art (NGA)
  • National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC)
  • National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
  • National Mediation Board (NMB)
  • National Science Foundation (NSF)
  • National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
  • Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
  • Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB)
  • Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC)
  • Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
  • Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR)
  • Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
  • Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR)
  • Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)
  • Peace Corps
  • Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
  • Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC)
  • Pretrial Services Agency (PSA)
  • The Presidio Trust (TPT)
  • Railroad Retirement Board (RRB)
  • Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
  • Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
  • Selective Service System (SSS)
  • Small Business Administration (SBA)
  • Smithsonian Institution (SI)
  • Surface Transportation Board (STB)
  • U.S. Access Board
  • U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
  • U.S. Arctic Research Commission (ARTIC)
  • U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB)
  • U.S. Commission on International and Religious Freedom
  • U.S. Election Assistance Commission
  • U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP)
  • U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH)
  • U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)
  • U.S. Office of Government Ethics (USOGE)
  • U.S. Office of Special Counsel (USOSC)
  • U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC)
  • U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA)
  • Vietnam Education Foundation

Cabinet Agencies

The federal agencies represented in the President’s Cabinet, which include the Executive Departments plus EPA, SBA, and the major White House offices. Currently these are:

  • The Department of State
  • The Department of the Treasury
  • The Department of Defense
  • The Department of Justice
  • The Department of the Interior
  • The Department of Agriculture
  • The Department of Commerce
  • The Department of Labor
  • The Department of Health and Human Services
  • The Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • The Department of Transportation
  • The Department of Energy
  • The Department of Education
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs
  • The Department of Homeland Security
  • The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR)
  • The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)
  • The Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
  • Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • Small Business Administration

Executive Departments

The executive departments are a subset of the CFO Act Agencies. These days, it’s rare for a policy to only apply to these agencies. These are defined

They are often “federated,” meaning that specific mission areas are separated into largely-independent bureaus which take direction from the main department. Each bureau will have their own organizational leadership structure, with a Chief Information Officer, etc. For instance, the Department of the Interior contains bureaus such as the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, each with their own CIO who receive direction on policy from the Interior CIO, but do not report directly to them. However, this is not always the case; by contrast, the Department of Veterans Affairs (the second-largest federal department) has no bureaus but three organizational units - each in itself bigger than many other agencies - but these units do not have separate leadership, and share one CIO for the agency.

In most cases, policies directed at the Executive Departments also apply to the bureaus under the departments, and the top level department will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of any such policies. As such, only the main Department offices will generally have a direct connection to the White House.

Defined in 5 U.S.C. § 101. Currently this includes:

  • The Department of State
  • The Department of the Treasury
  • The Department of Defense
  • The Department of Justice
  • The Department of the Interior
  • The Department of Agriculture
  • The Department of Commerce
  • The Department of Labor
  • The Department of Health and Human Services
  • The Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • The Department of Transportation
  • The Department of Energy
  • The Department of Education
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs
  • The Department of Homeland Security

Military Departments

Defined in in 5 U.S.C. § 102. Currently this includes:

  • The Department of the Army
  • The Department of the Navy
  • The Department of the Air Force

It is worth noting that the Marines are part of the Navy, Space Force is part of the Air Force, but the Coast Guard is part of the Department of Homeland Security though still technically part of the “Armed Forces.” The Army Corps of Engineers is part of the Army but also has civilian mission areas and non-military personnel.

Independent Agencies

These are the non-Executive Department agencies, though several are still large, Cabinet agencies.

Defined in 5 U.S.C. § 104(1) which defines this as “An establishment in the executive branch (other than the United States Postal Service or the Postal Regulatory Commission) which is not an Executive department, military department, Government corporation, or part thereof, or part of an independent establishment.”

This includes currently:

  • Administrative Conference of the United States
  • African Development Foundation
  • Central Intelligence Agency
  • Commission on Civil Rights
  • Commission on Presidential Scholars
  • Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission)
  • Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
  • Consumer Product Safety Commission
  • Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board
  • Denali Commission
  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
  • Export-Import Bank of the United States
  • Farm Credit Administration
  • Federal Communications Commission
  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  • Federal Election Commission
  • Federal Housing Finance Agency
  • Federal Labor Relations Authority
  • Federal Maritime Commission
  • Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
  • Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission
  • Federal Reserve System
  • Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board
  • Federal Trade Commission
  • General Services Administration
  • Indoor Air Quality
  • Institute of Museum and Library Services
  • Inter-American Foundation
  • Merit Systems Protection Board
  • Millennium Challenge Corporation
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • National Archives and Records Administration
  • National Capital Planning Commission
  • National Credit Union Administration
  • National Endowment for the Arts
  • National Endowment for the Humanities
  • National Labor Relations Board
  • National Mediation Board
  • National Railroad Passenger Corporation
  • National Science Foundation
  • National Transportation Safety Board
  • Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
  • Office of Government Ethics
  • Office of Personnel Management
  • Office of Special Counsel
  • Office of the Director of National Intelligence
  • Peace Corps
  • Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
  • Postal Regulatory Commission
  • Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
  • Railroad Retirement Board
  • Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Selective Service System
  • Small Business Administration
  • Social Security Administration
  • Surface Transportation Board
  • Tennessee Valley Authority
  • U.S. Agency for Global Media
  • U.S. Agency for International Development
  • U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission
  • U.S. International Development Finance Corporation
  • U.S. International Trade Commission
  • U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
  • U.S. Postal Service
  • U.S. Trade and Development Agency

Government Corporation

An independent organization that is either a Wholly Owned Government Corporation or a Mixed-Ownership Government Corporation. See [31 U.S.C. § 9101].

These are different from quasi-governmental entities, such as the Legal Services Corporation and the Smithsonian Institution.

Wholly Owned Government Corporations

These are government-owned, independent corporations. Their budget is included in the President’s Budget and in many ways they act similar to a normal federal agency, but they have more autonomy than most agencies.

Defined in 31 U.S.C. § 9101.” Currently this includes:

  • the Commodity Credit Corporation
  • the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
  • the Export-Import Bank of the United States
  • the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
  • Federal Prison Industries, Incorporated
  • the Corporation for National and Community Service
  • the Government National Mortgage Association
  • the United States International Development Finance Corporation
  • the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation
  • the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
  • the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation
  • the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development when carrying out duties and powers related to * Federal Housing Administration Fund
  • the Tennessee Valley Authority
  • the Panama Canal Commission
  • the Millennium Challenge Corporation
  • the International Clean Energy Foundation

Mixed-Ownership Government Corporations

These corporations are even more independent than Wholly Owned Government Corporations, and only some of these appear as part of the President’s Budget.

Defined in 31 U.S.C. § 9101.” Currently this includes:

  • the Central Bank for Cooperatives
  • the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  • the Federal Home Loan Banks
  • the Federal Intermediate Credit Banks
  • the Federal Land Banks
  • the National Credit Union Administration Central Liquidity Facility
  • the Regional Banks for Cooperatives
  • the Financing Corporation
  • the Resolution Trust Corporation
  • the Resolution Funding Corporation

Statistical Agencies

These are a group of agency bureaus responsible for collecting and maintaining statistical data used by the government. They are loosely defined in 44 U.S.C. § 3561, the following list comes from the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology.