Executive Order 13231: Critical Infrastructure Protection in the Information Age
President: George W. Bush
Established a presidential board to coordinate protection of critical information infrastructure, assigned federal system-security and public-private partnership duties, and continued the National Infrastructure Advisory Council.
Status: Revoked.
Is Executive Order 13231 still in effect? No. Revoked February 12, 2013; functions moved to later cyber and infrastructure policy.
What does Executive Order 13231 do?
The order assigned these duties: Critical Infrastructure Protection Board — Coordinate programs, incident response, outreach, research and budgets; OMB Director and agency heads — Oversee federal information-system security.
Checked the Board’s coordination and federal information-security assignments against the signed order; confirmed EO 13636 expressly revoked it in 2013. The DHS National Infrastructure Advisory Council is identified as a successor body, not the same board.
Before and after
Before the order
PDD-63 and information-security statutes supplied earlier roles, but no senior board coordinated the post-September 11 program in this form.
After the order
The board coordinated the 2003 National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace. EO 13284 and EO 13286 added DHS and adjusted related bodies. EO 13636 revoked EO 13231 in 2013 while establishing a successor cybersecurity framework; PPD-21 separately updated infrastructure roles.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Critical Infrastructure Protection Board | Coordinate programs, incident response, outreach, research and budgets | While the board existed |
| OMB Director and agency heads | Oversee federal information-system security | Ongoing |
| Commerce Secretary and NIAC | Support private-sector advice | Two-year council term unless extended |
| Federal agencies | Cooperate while retaining statutory authority | Ongoing |
What happened next
EO 13231 signed.
EO 13636 revoked EO 13231 and directed a successor framework.
PPD-21 updated critical-infrastructure responsibilities.
Legal and source detail
How it works legally
The order preserved existing authority and created no enforceable private right. Information-security statutes, procurement rules, privacy and civil-liberties protections, sector statutes and later directives constrained implementation.
Sources by type
If a source is unavailable, first check the cited publisher or another official repository. The cited publisher remains the authority.
Primary and official sources
Orders, laws, court records and official implementation material.
- Bush White House — signed action (opens in a new tab) Official record
- CISA — infrastructure-protection planning (opens in a new tab) Official record
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on October 2, 2026. How we research →