Independent agencies of the United States government
Independent agencies of the United States federal government are agencies that exist outside the federal executive departments (those headed by a Cabinet secretary) and the Executive Office of the President. In a narrower sense, the term refers only to those independent agencies that, while considered part of the executive branch, have regulatory or rulemaking authority and are insulated from presidential control, usually because the president's power to dismiss the agency head or a member is limited. Established through separate statutes passed by the Congress, each respective statutory grant of authority defines the  goals the agency must work towards, as well as what substantive areas, if any, over which it may have the power of rulemaking. These agency rules (or regulations), when in force, have the power of federal law. Executive and regulatory agencies. Independent agencies exist outside the federal executive departments (those headed by a Cabinet secretary) and the Executive Office of the President. There is a further distinction between independent executive agencies and independent "regulatory" agencies, which have been assigned rulemaking responsibilities or authorities by Congress. The Paperwork Reduction Act lists 19 enumerated "independent regulatory agencies", such as the Securities and  Exchange Commission, the Federal Reserve, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Generally, the heads of independent regulatory agencies can only be removed for cause, but Cabinet members and heads of independent executive agencies, such as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, serve "at the pleasure of the president" and can be removed without cause. The degree to which the President has the power to use executive orders to set policy for independent executive agencies is disputed. Many orders specifically exempt independent agencies, but some do not. Executive Order 12866  has been a particular matter of controversy; it requires cost-benefit analysis for certain regulatory actions. In a narrower sense, the term "independent agency" refers only to these independent regulatory agencies that, while considered part of the executive branch, have rulemaking authority and are insulated from presidential control, usually because the president's power to dismiss the agency head or a member is limited. Structure of regulatory agencies. Independent agencies can be distinguished from the federal executive departments and other executive agencies by their structural and functional characteristics. Their officers can be protected from removal by the president, they can  be controlled by a board that cannot be appointed all at once, and the board can be required to be bipartisan. Presidential attempts to remove independent agency officials have generated most of the important Supreme Court legal opinions in this area. In 1935, the Supreme Court in the case of "Humphrey's Executor v. United States" decided that although the president had the power to remove officials from agencies that were "an arm or an eye of the executive", it upheld statutory limitations on the president's power to remove officers of administrative bodies that performed quasi legislative or  quasi judicial functions, such as the Federal Trade Commission. Presidents normally do have the authority to remove regular executive agency heads at will, but they must meet the statutory requirements for removal of commissioners of independent agencies, such as demonstrating incapacity, neglect of duty, malfeasance, or other good cause. While most executive agencies have a single director, administrator, or secretary appointed by the president of the United States, independent agencies (in the narrower sense of being outside presidential control) almost always have a commission, board, or similar collegial body consisting of five to seven members who share power over the  agency. (This is why many independent agencies include the word "Commission" or "Board" in their name.) The president appoints the commissioners or board members, subject to Senate confirmation, but they often serve terms that are staggered and longer than a four-year presidential term, meaning that most presidents will not have the opportunity to appoint all the commissioners of a given independent agency. In addition, most independent agencies have a statutory requirement of bipartisan membership on the commission, so the president cannot simply fill vacancies with members of his own political party. The president can normally designate which commissioner  will serve as the chairperson. Congress can designate certain agencies explicitly as "independent" in the governing statute, but the functional differences have more legal significance. In reality, the high turnover rate among these commissioners or board members means that most presidents have the opportunity to fill enough vacancies to constitute a voting majority on each independent agency commission within the first two years of the first term as president. In some famous instances, presidents have found the independent agencies more loyal and in lockstep with the president's wishes and policy objectives than some dissenters among the executive agency political  appointments. Although Congress can pass statutes limiting the circumstances under which the president can remove commissioners of independent agencies, if the independent agency exercises any executive powers like enforcement, and most of them do, Congress cannot reserve removal power over executive officers to itself. Constitutionally, Congress can only remove officers through impeachment proceedings. Members of Congress cannot serve as commissioners on independent agencies that have executive powers, nor can Congress itself appoint the commissioners – the Appointments Clause of the Constitution vests that power in the president. The Senate does participate, however, in appointments through "advice and consent", which  occurs through confirmation hearings and votes on the president's nominees. Examples of independent agencies. These agencies are not represented in the cabinet and are not part of the Executive Office of the president: Agencies outside of executive branch. Although not officially part of the executive branch, these agencies are required by federal statute to release certain information about their programs and activities into the Federal Register, the daily journal of government activities: