List of United States Departments

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The United States departments belong to the executive branch of the federal government of the United States . The first three ministries - the Foreign Ministry , the War Ministry, and the Treasury  - were all established within a few weeks of 1789.

The ministries are run by the ministers who are all members of the traditional cabinet . Since 1972, federal law has also provided ministers to succeed the President of the United States : fourth overall after the Vice President , the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Senate President pro tempore , then in a fixed order of the ministries.

Although most federal agencies belong to one of the ministries, some, such as the Environmental Protection Agency , are outside this hierarchy.

The ministries

The departments are extensions of the powers of the President of the United States . They can only be established by Congress . Unlike the German Chancellor, for example, the President cannot restructure these at will and as necessary.

Current ministries

The following table contains all ministries in existence today.

Department Establishment Surname Changes Budget 2010 (2009)
(billion $ )
Exterior 1789 US Department of State 051.0 00(37.1)
Finances 1789 US Department of the Treasury 065.0 0(326.7)
Interior 1849 US Department of the Interior 010.9 00(11.8)
Judiciary 1870 US Department of Justice 028.6 00(26.6)
Agriculture 1889 US Department of Agriculture 129.3 0(109.3)
trade 1903 US Department of Commerce originally trade and labor; Work outsourced in 1913 014.2 00(10.2)
job 1913 US Department of Labor 172.4 0(109.8)
defense 1947 US Department of Defense 688.0 0(636.5)
Health and Social Services 1953 US Department of Health and Human Services originally health, education and welfare; Education outsourced in 1979 812.9 0(761.1)
Housing and urban development 1965 US Department of Housing and Urban Development 058.9 00(59.5)
traffic 1966 US Department of Transportation 070.5 00(70.6)
energy 1977 US Department of Energy 028.9 00(23.9)
education 1979 US Department of Education 056.0 00(32.4)
War veterans 1988 US Department of Veterans Affairs 124.0 00(94.9)
Internal security 2002 US Department of Homeland Security 051.6 00(51.6)
Total budget for ministries: 2362 , 0(2362), 0

Former ministries

Department Surname time Changes
war US Department of War 1789-1947 as subordinate department US Department of the Army in Defense risen
marine US Department of the Navy 1798-1947 as subordinate department in the Ministry of Defense risen
post Office US Post Office Department 1872-1971 Reorganized as a federal agency into the United States Postal Service
Trade and labor US Department of Commerce and Labor 1903-1913 in Trade and Labor Ministry divided
Health, education and welfare US Department of Health, Education and Welfare 1953-1979 in Health and Education Ministry divided

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Office of Management and Budget . In each case, the total spending ( Total Outlays used), resulting from compulsory ( mandatory ) and discretionary ( discretionary composed) spending. In addition, some ministries have a budget for loan programs. The figures for 2010 are estimates.