Title 13CensusRelease 119-73

§4 Functions of Secretary; regulations; delegation

Title 13 › Chapter CHAPTER 1— - ADMINISTRATION › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - GENERAL PROVISIONS › § 4

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary must carry out the duties in this title, can make rules to do so, and can give those duties and rule-making power to Department of Commerce employees.

Full Legal Text

Title 13, §4

Census — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

The Secretary shall perform the functions and duties imposed upon him by this title, may issue such rules and regulations as he deems necessary to carry out such functions and duties, and may delegate the performance of such functions and duties and the authority to issue such rules and regulations to such officers and employees of the Department of Commerce as he may designate.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Section is new, and was inserted to conform with 1950 Reorganization Plan No. 5, effective May 24, 1950, §§ 1, 2, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1263, which is set out as a note under section 591 of title 5, U. S. C., 1952 ed., Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees [now set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees]. That plan transferred all functions (with a few exceptions not applicable to the Census Bureau) of all agencies, officers and employees of the Department of Commerce to the Secretary of Commerce, and vested power in him to delegate the functions so transferred, or any of his other functions, to such agencies, officers or employees within the Department as he designates. See, also, section 253 of title 13, U.S.C., 1952 ed., which provided for delegation of functions in connection with the quinquennial censuses of governments, and authorized the Secretary to promulgate

Rules and Regulations

with respect to such censuses. That section has been omitted from this revised title, as the provision thereof for delegation of functions is covered by this section, and the provision thereof which related to

Rules and Regulations

is covered by section 22 of title 1, U.S.C., 1952 ed., General Provisions. Because of the transfer effected by 1950 Reorganization Plan No. 5, referred to above, sections of title 13, U.S.C., 1952 ed., which prescribed functions of the Bureau of the Census, the Census Office, or the Director of the Census, have, in this revised title, been changed to refer to the Secretary.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1976—Pub. L. 94–521 inserted “

Regulations

” in section catchline, authorized the Secretary to issue such

Rules and Regulations

as he deems necessary to carry out the functions and duties imposed upon him by this title, authorized delegation of authority to issue such

Rules and Regulations

to officers and employees of the Department of Commerce, and struck out a provision which allowed delegation of performance of such functions and duties to bureaus and agencies of the Department of Commerce.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1976 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 94–521 effective Oct. 17, 1976, see section 17 of Pub. L. 94–521, set out as a note under section 1 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

13 U.S.C. § 4

Title 13Census

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73