Increasing Economic Opportunity and Business 
                Participation of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 
                America, and for the purpose of providing equal 
                economic opportunities for full participation of Asian 
                American and Pacific Islander businesses in our free 
                market economy where they may be underserved and thus 
                improving the quality of life for Asian Americans and 
                Pacific Islanders, it is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. (a) There is established in the Department 
                of Commerce the President's Advisory Commission on 
                Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (Commission). The 
                Commission shall consist of not more than 15 members 
                appointed by the President, one of whom shall be 
                designated by the President as Chair. The Commission 
                shall include members who: (i) have a history of 
                involvement with the Asian American and Pacific 
                Islander communities; (ii) are from the business 
                enterprise sector; (iii) are from civic associations 
                representing one or more of the diverse Asian American 
                and Pacific Islander communities; (iv) are from the 
                fields of economic, social, and community development; 
                or (v) have such other experience as the President 
                deems appropriate.

                    (b) The Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) shall 
                designate an Executive Director for the Commission.

                Sec. 2. The Commission shall provide advice to the 
                President, through the Secretary, on:

                    (a) the development, monitoring, and coordination 
                of executive branch efforts to improve the economic and 
                community development of Asian American and Pacific 
                Islander businesses through ensuring equal opportunity 
                to participate in Federal programs, and public-sector, 
                private-sector partnerships, and through the collection 
                of data related to Asian American and Pacific Islander 
                businesses; and
                    (b) ways to increase the business diversification 
                of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, including 
                ways to foster research and data on Asian American and 
                Pacific Islander businesses including their level of 
                participation in the national economy and their 
                economic and community development.

                Sec. 3. (a) The Secretary shall establish within the 
                Department of Commerce an office known as the White 
                House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific 
                Islanders (Office). The Office shall provide support 
                for the Commission and the interagency working group 
                created in section 3(b) of this order.

                    (b) The Secretary shall also create an interagency 
                working group (Working Group) whose activities shall be 
                coordinated by the Department of Commerce. The 
                Secretary shall designate the executive departments and 
                agencies that shall serve on the Working Group 
                (executive departments and agencies) and the heads of 
                those departments and agencies shall select the 
                officials that shall serve as their respective 
                representatives on the Working Group. The Executive 
                Director of the Commission shall also serve as the 
                Director of the Office and the Working Group, and shall 
                report to the Secretary or the Secretary's designee. 
                The Director of the Working Group shall advise the 
                Secretary or the Secretary's designee on efforts by the 
                Federal Government to improve access to economic 
                opportunities, through equal access to such 
                opportunities, for Asian American and Pacific Islander 
                businesses where

[[Page 28038]]

                they may be underserved and thus to improve the quality 
                of life of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

                Sec. 4. The head of each executive department and 
                agency on the Working Group shall designate a senior 
                Federal official responsible for management or program 
                administration to report directly to the agency head on 
                activities implementing this order and to serve as a 
                liaison to, and representative on, the Working Group. 
                The Secretary may designate additional Federal 
                officials, with the concurrence of the head of the 
                designated executive department or agency, to carry out 
                functions of the Working Group. To the extent permitted 
                by law and to the extent practicable, each designated 
                executive department and agency shall provide 
                appropriate information requested by the Working Group, 
                including data relating to the eligibility for and 
                participation of Asian American and Pacific Islander 
                businesses in Federal programs. Where adequate data are 
                not available, the Working Group shall suggest the 
                means of collecting such data.

                Sec. 5. Each designated executive department and agency 
                shall prepare a plan for, and shall document, its 
                efforts to support economic opportunities for Asian 
                American and Pacific Islander businesses. This plan 
                shall address, among other things, executive branch 
                efforts to:

                    (a) increase participation in Federal programs for 
                Asian American and Pacific Islander businesses through 
                equal access to such programs;
                    (b) ensure nondiscrimination in Federal contracts 
                and procurement opportunities;
                    (c) provide equal opportunity for public-sector, 
                private-sector partnerships for the community and 
                economic development of Asian American and Pacific 
                Islander businesses; and
                    (d) foster research and data collection on Asian 
                American and Pacific Islander businesses. Each plan 
                shall be submitted through the working group and the 
                Commission to the Secretary at a date to be established 
                by the Secretary.

                Sec. 6. The Secretary shall review the plans of the 
                designated executive departments and agencies and 
                develop for submission to the President for his 
                approval an integrated Federal plan (Federal Plan) to 
                increase the participation of Asian American and 
                Pacific Islander businesses in executive branch 
                programs through equal access to such programs where 
                such organizations may be underserved. Actions 
                described in the Federal Plan shall address improving 
                access by Asian American and Pacific Islander 
                businesses to Federal programs and fostering advances 
                in relevant research and data as it pertains to 
                community economic development. The Secretary shall 
                disseminate the Federal Plan, to the extent the Plan is 
                approved by the President, to appropriate members of 
                the executive branch. The findings and recommendations 
                in the Federal Plan shall be followed by the designated 
                executive departments and agencies in their policies 
                and activities, to the extent permitted by law and as 
                practicable.

                Sec. 7. Insofar as the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 
                as amended (5 U.S.C. App.) (the ``Act''), may apply to 
                the administration of any portion of this order, any 
                functions of the President under the Act, except that 
                of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the 
                Secretary in accordance with the guidelines issued by 
                the Administrator of General Services.

                Sec. 8. Members of the Commission shall serve without 
                compensation, but shall be allowed travel expenses, 
                including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as 
                authorized by law for persons serving intermittently in 
                the Government service (5 U.S.C. 5701-5707). To the 
                extent permitted by law and appropriations, and where 
                practicable, executive departments and agencies shall, 
                upon request by the Secretary, provide assistance to 
                the Commission and to the Working Group, and the 
                Department of Commerce shall provide administrative 
                support and funding for the Commission.

                Sec. 9. The Commission shall terminate 2 years from the 
                date of this order, unless renewed by the President.

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                Sec. 10. For the purposes of this order, the term: (a) 
                ``Asian'' includes persons having origins in any of the 
                original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or 
                the Indian subcontinent; and the term (b) ``Pacific 
                Islander'' includes persons having origins in any of 
                the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other 
                Pacific Islands.

                Sec. 11. The Secretary of Commerce shall consult the 
                Attorney General as appropriate on the implementation 
                of this order to ensure that such implementation 
                affords the equal protection of the laws required by 
                the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment to the 
                Constitution.

                Sec. 12. This order is not intended to, and does not, 
                create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, 
                enforceable at law or in equity, by a party against the 
                United States, its departments, agencies, entities, 
                officers, employees or agents, or any other person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)B

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                     May 13, 2004.