[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 21 (Monday, May 31, 1999)]
[Pages 988-989]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Executive Order 13122--Interagency Task Force on the Economic 
Development of the Southwest Border

May 25, 1999

    By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and 
the laws of the United States of America, and in order to provide a more 
rapid and integrated Federal response to the economic development 
challenges of the Southwest Border region, it is hereby ordered as 
follows:
    Section 1. Establishment of an Interagency Task Force on the 
Economic Development of the Southwest Border. (a) There is established 
the ``Interagency Task Force on the Economic Development of the 
Southwest Border'' (Task Force) that reports to the Vice President, as 
Chair of the President's Community Empowerment Board (PCEB), and to the 
Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, as Vice Chair of the 
PCEB.
    (b) The Task Force shall comprise the Secretary of State, Secretary 
of Agriculture, Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Defense, the 
Attorney General, Secretary of the Interior, Secretary of Education, 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development, Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of 
Transportation, Secretary of the Treasury, Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget, Director of National Drug Control Policy, 
Administrator of General Services, Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, or 
their designees, and such other senior executive branch officials as may 
be determined by the Co-Chairs of the Task Force. The Secretaries of the 
Treasury, Agriculture, and Labor shall Co-Chair the Task Force, rotating 
annually. The agency chairing the Task Force will provide administrative 
support for the Task Force.
    (c) The purpose of the Task Force is to coordinate and better 
leverage existing Administration efforts for the Southwest Border, in 
concert with locally led efforts, in order to increase the living 
standards and the overall economic profile of the Southwest Border so 
that it may achieve the average of the Nation. Specifically, the Task 
Force shall:
    (1) analyze the existing programs and policies of Task Force members 
that relate to the Southwest Border to determine what changes, 
modifications, and innovations should be considered;
    (2) consider statistical and data analysis, research, and policy 
studies related to the Southwest Border;
    (3) develop and recommend short-term and long-term options for 
promoting sustainable economic development;
    (4) consult and coordinate activities with State, tribal, and local 
governments, community leaders, Members of Congress, the private sector, 
and other interested parties, paying particular attention to maintaining 
existing authorities of the States, tribes, and local governments, and 
preserving their existing working relationships with other agencies, 
organizations, or individuals;
    (5) coordinate and collaborate on research and demonstration 
priorities of Task Force members agencies related to the Southwest 
Border;

[[Page 989]]

    (6) integrate Administration initiatives and programs into the 
design of sustainable economic development actions for the Southwest 
Border; and
    (7) focus initial efforts on pilot communities for implementing a 
coordinated and expedited Federal response to local economic development 
and other needs.
    (d) The Task Force shall issue an interim report to the Vice 
President by November 15, 1999. The Task Force shall issue its first 
annual report to the Vice President by April 15, 2000, with subsequent 
reports to follow yearly and a final report on April 15, 2002. The 
reports shall describe the actions taken by, and progress of, each 
member of the Task Force in carrying out this order. The Task Force 
shall terminate 30 days after submitting its final report unless a Task 
Force consensus recommends continuation of activities.
    Sec. 2. Specific Activities by Task Force Members and Other 
Agencies. The agencies represented on the Task Force shall work together 
and report their actions and progress in carrying out this order to the 
Task Force Chair 1 month before the reports are due to the Vice 
President under section 1(d) of this order.
    Sec. 3. Cooperation. All efforts taken by agencies under sections 1 
and 2 of this order shall, as appropriate, further partnerships and 
cooperation with organizations that represent the Southwest Border and 
with State and local governments.
    Sec. 4. (a) ``Agency'' means an executive agency as defined in 5 
U.S.C. 105.
    (b) The ``Southwest Border'' or ``Southwest Border region'' is 
defined as including the areas up to 150 miles north of the United 
States-Mexican border in the States of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and 
California.
    Sec. 5. Judicial Review. This order does not create any right or 
benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party 
against the United States, its agencies, its officers, or any person.
                                            William J. Clinton
The White House,
May 25, 1999.

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., May 27, 1999]

Note: This Executive order was published in the Federal Register on May 
28.