Executive Order Citation Generator
Cite a U.S. presidential executive order in APA 7, MLA 9 and Chicago 18. Enter the order's number, title and Federal Register details — and its page in title 3 of the Code of Federal Regulations, if it has one — and get the reference, in-text citation and footnote, with the number written the way each style wants. Free, no sign-up.
Executive order details
The date of that day's Federal Register, not the signing date.
Orders are later compiled in title 3 of the Code of Federal Regulations. APA cites that page when it exists.
Your citations
Enter the order number and either its Federal Register volume and page or its 3 C.F.R. page and year to see your citations.
How to Use the Executive Order Citation Generator
- 1. Find the order in the Federal Register. Search federalregister.gov for the order number. Its page gives the title, the signing date, the citation (79 FR 56931), the publication date and a link to the official PDF on GovInfo, whose header shows the issue number.
- 2. Enter the numbers. Type the order number without a comma — the generator adds one where a style wants it. Add the last page and the issue number for MLA, and the president who signed it.
- 3. Add the 3 C.F.R. page if the order has been compiled. Each year's orders are reprinted in title 3 of the Code of Federal Regulations. APA cites that page and year; leave them empty for a recent order and APA falls back to the Federal Register.
- 4. Copy the citations. Use the reference entry or footnote in your list or notes and the in-text form in your sentence.
Where an Executive Order Is Published
After a president signs an order, the Office of the Federal Register numbers it and prints it in the daily Federal Register, usually a few days later. The next year's edition of title 3 of the Code of Federal Regulations (3 C.F.R.) reprints the year's orders as a compilation. Legal citations point to one printing or the other.
| Part | Example | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Exec. Order No. 13,676 | Executive Order 13676 | The number assigned by the Office of the Federal Register. Legal form puts a comma in five-digit numbers; MLA does not. |
| 79 Fed. Reg. 56,931 | 79 FR 56931 | Volume 79 of the Federal Register, page 56931, where the order begins. |
| (Sept. 23, 2014) | Federal Register date | The date of that day's Federal Register, not the date the president signed. |
| 3 C.F.R. 294 (2014) | 3 CFR, 2014 Comp., p. 294 | Page 294 of the title 3 compilation of 2014's presidential documents. |
APA 7 (§11.7) cites the compilation — Exec. Order No. 13,676, 3 C.F.R. 294 (2014) — and uses the Federal Register only for an order not yet compiled. Chicago 18 (§14.190) follows the Bluebook, which accepts either printing; the Federal Register with its exact date is the usual choice and the one the generator gives. MLA 9 cites the copy you read: the Executive Office of the President as author with the president in square brackets, the order number and title in roman type, the signing date, and the Federal Register as an italic container with volume, issue, date and pages.
Executive Order Citation Examples
Executive Order 13676, Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, signed by Barack Obama on September 18, 2014 — the order APA's manual uses as its example:
APA 7th edition
Reference list:
Exec. Order No. 13,676, 3 C.F.R. 294 (2014). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2014-09-23/pdf/2014-22805.pdf
In-text (parenthetical):
(Exec. Order No. 13,676, 2014)
In-text (narrative):
Executive Order No. 13,676 (2014)
MLA 9th edition
Works Cited:
United States, Executive Office of the President [Barack Obama]. Executive Order 13676: Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. 18 Sept. 2014. Federal Register, vol. 79, no. 184, 23 Sept. 2014, pp. 56931–35, www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2014-09-23/pdf/2014-22805.pdf.
In-text citation:
(United States, Executive Order 13676)
Chicago 18th edition (notes)
Footnote:
Exec. Order No. 13,676, 79 Fed. Reg. 56,931 (September 23, 2014), https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2014-09-23/pdf/2014-22805.pdf.
Common Mistakes
- Dating a legal citation by the signature. The Bluebook and Chicago give the date of the Federal Register printing (September 23, 2014), not the signing date (September 18). MLA gives both.
- Dropping the comma — or adding one in MLA. Legal form writes 13,676; MLA writes Executive Order 13676, as the order itself does.
- Citing a press release. Cite the Federal Register or C.F.R. text; a White House announcement is not the version of record.
- Mixing the two printings. 79 Fed. Reg. 56,931 and 3 C.F.R. 294 are different publications; pair each page with its own volume and year.
- A bibliography entry in Chicago. Chicago cites executive orders in notes only.
- Treating a revoked order as current. The Federal Register page lists later orders that amend, continue or revoke an order; say so in your text when it matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do you cite an executive order in APA 7?
- APA uses the legal form: Exec. Order No. 13,676, 3 C.F.R. 294 (2014), followed by the URL of the copy you read. The in-text citation is (Exec. Order No. 13,676, 2014), or Executive Order No. 13,676 (2014) in a sentence. If the order is too recent to be in the title 3 compilation, cite the Federal Register volume, page and date instead.
- How do you cite an executive order in MLA?
- Start with the government author and the president in square brackets — United States, Executive Office of the President [Barack Obama] — then Executive Order 13676 and its title in roman type, the signing date, and the italic Federal Register with volume, issue, date, pages and URL. In text, the MLA Style Center's own example gives the country and the order: (United States, Executive Order 13676).
- Where do I find an executive order's Federal Register citation?
- Search the order number on federalregister.gov. Each document page shows the citation (79 FR 56931), the publication and signing dates and a link to the official PDF on GovInfo. GovInfo also holds the annual title 3 compilations of the Code of Federal Regulations, where you find the 3 C.F.R. page.
- Should I cite the Federal Register or the Code of Federal Regulations?
- Either identifies the order. APA prefers the 3 C.F.R. compilation once it exists; the Bluebook and Chicago accept either and usually give the Federal Register with its exact date, which is available within days of signing. Whichever you choose, take the volume, page and date from the same publication.
- Why does the order number have a comma?
- Legal citation (Bluebook rule 6.2) puts a comma in any number of five or more digits, so Executive Order 13676 becomes Exec. Order No. 13,676 in APA, Chicago and Bluebook citations. Four-digit numbers such as Executive Order 9981 take none, and MLA writes the number as the order prints it.
- Does an executive order go in a Chicago bibliography?
- No. Chicago 18 cites executive orders, like other legal documents, in notes only. If an instructor requires every source in the bibliography, ask which form they want.