National Economic Council (United States) - National Economic Council

The National Economic Council (NEC) of the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering economic policy matters, separate from matters relating to domestic policy, which are the domain of the Domestic Policy Council. The council forms part of the Office of White House Policy which contains the National Economic Council and other offices. The Director of the NEC is titled the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and Director of the National Economic Council.

History and mission

The National Economic Council was created on January 25, 1993, by Executive Order 12835, to coordinate the economic policy making process and provide economic policy advice to the President. The Council also ensures that economic policy decisions and programs are consistent with the President's stated goals, and monitors the implementation of the President's economic goals. Its creation fulfilled a major campaign pledge of President Clinton to put the then current economic situation of the United States at the forefront of federal policy making.

Even before the formal creation of the NEC, some form of an economic policy staff had existed in the White House since the 1960s. President Lyndon B. Johnson assigned a senior-level aide to organize staff and develop domestic policy, which included economic policy. In 1970, President Richard M. Nixon issued an executive order that created the Office of Policy Development, a large White House office with jurisdiction over economic and domestic policy. President William J. Clinton again altered the structure by splitting the office, as mentioned above, both parts of which exist today underneath the umbrella of the Office of White House Policy, which can also be known as the Office of Policy Development.

The NEC has four principal functions: to coordinate policy-making for domestic and international economic issues, to coordinate economic policy advice for the President, to ensure that policy decisions and programs are consistent with the President's economic goals, and to monitor implementation of the President's economic policy agenda.

Organization

The NEC comprises numerous department and agency heads within the administration whose policy jurisdictions affect the nation's economy. The NEC Director, in conjunction with these officials, coordinates and implements the President's economic policy objectives. The Director is supported by a staff of policy specialists in various fields including agriculture, commerce, energy, financial markets, fiscal policy, healthcare, labor, and Social Security.