Government operations and workforce

Executive Order 13891: Promoting the Rule of Law Through Improved Agency Guidance Documents

President: Donald J. Trump

EO 13891 required agencies to maintain searchable online guidance portals and follow approval procedures for significant guidance.

Status: Revoked — by EO 13992 on January 20, 2021.

Is Executive Order 13891 still in effect? No. EO 13992 revoked it in 2021.

What does Executive Order 13891 do?

It treated guidance as generally nonbinding unless independent law supplied a binding effect. EO 13992 revoked those presidential procedures in January 2021; later agency guidance still has to follow its governing statutes and administrative law.

Evidence review, September 23, 2026: The Federal Register index records the later relationship: Revoked by EO 13992. The linked successor text should be read for the exact scope.

Administration position: Revocation by EO 13992 removed the order’s executive-branch process. It did not make every existing guidance document binding, invalid or withdrawn; agency actions require their own lawful steps.
SignedOctober 9, 2019
Original directionCreate guidance portals and review significant guidance through the order’s prescribed process
Later evidenceEO 13992 §2 revoked this guidance-document order; §3 directed agencies to address implementing measures consistently with law.
Review dateSeptember 26, 2026

Before and after

Before the order

Agencies issued guidance through differing processes; the order sought common publication and review steps for executive agencies.

After the order

EO 13992 §2 revoked this guidance-document order; §3 directed agencies to address implementing measures consistently with law.

Revocation by EO 13992 removed the order’s executive-branch process. It did not make every existing guidance document binding, invalid or withdrawn; agency actions require their own lawful steps.

Who had to do what

Agency / officeActionTiming / position
Agency heads and OMBCreate guidance portals and review significant guidance through the order’s prescribed processFrom 2019
Later authorityEO 13992 §2 revoked this guidance-document order; §3 directed agencies to address implementing measures consistently with law.January 20, 2021

What happened next

EO 13891 signed.

EO 13992 §2 revoked this guidance-document order; §3 directed agencies to address implementing measures consistently with law.

Guide checked against signed text and cited later primary evidence.