Independent agencies of the United States federal government

Established through separate statutes passed by Congress, each respective statutory grant of authority defines the goals the agency must work towards, as well as what substantive areas, if any, over which it may have the power of rulemaking.

Presidential attempts to remove independent agency officials have generated most of the important Supreme Court legal opinions in this area.

[9] In 1935, the Supreme Court in the case of Humphrey's Executor v. United States decided that although the president had the power to remove officials from agencies that were "an arm or an eye of the executive", it upheld statutory limitations on the president's power to remove officers of administrative bodies that performed quasi-legislative or quasi-judicial functions, such as the Federal Trade Commission.

In addition, most independent agencies have a statutory requirement of bipartisan membership on the commission, so the president cannot simply fill vacancies with members of his own political party.

[9] Congress can designate certain agencies explicitly as "independent" in the governing statute, but the functional differences have more legal significance.

[17] The Senate does participate, however, in appointments through "advice and consent", which occurs through confirmation hearings and votes on the president's nominees.