Joe Biden's executive orders and actions

Click here to read more about executive orders in the second term of the Trump administration.

President Joe Biden (D) signed 162 executive orders, 242 presidential memoranda, 725 proclamations, and 152 notices.

Each of these presidential documents is different in authority and implementation. Executive orders are directives written by the president to officials within the executive branch requiring them to take or stop some action related to policy or management. They are numbered, published in the Federal Register, and cite the authority by which the president is making the order.

Presidential memoranda and notices also include instructions directed at executive officials, but they are neither numbered nor have the same publication requirements. The Office of Management and Budget is also not required to issue a budgetary impact statement on the subject of the memoranda or notices.

In his 2014 book, By Order of the President: The Use and Abuse of Executive Direct Action, Phillip J. Cooper, a professor of public administration at Portland State University, wrote, "As a practical matter, the memorandum is now being used as the equivalent of an executive order, but without meeting the legal requirements for an executive order."

Proclamations are a third type of executive directive that typically relate to private individuals or ceremonial events, such as holidays and commemorations.

HIGHLIGHTS

Biden issued an average of 41 executive orders per year in office, the third-lowest average among the seven presidents who held office since 1981.

Donald Trump's (R) average was highest within this timeframe, at 55 executive orders, and Barack Obama’s (D) average was lowest, at 35.

This page provides a list of the executive orders, presidential memoranda, and proclamations issued by Biden in reverse chronological order.

• Executive orders
• Presidential memoranda
• Proclamations
• Notices
• Historical use of executive orders, 1789-2025

Executive orders issued by Biden

Executive orders are directives written by the president to officials within the executive branch requiring them to take or stop some action related to policy or management. They are numbered, published in the Federal Register, and cite the authority by which the president is making the order.

Average number of executive orders issued each year by president, 1921-2025

The following chart compares the average number of executive orders issued each year between 1921 and 2025. The number of executive orders issued declined during this time period with Presidents Barack Obama (D) and George W. Bush issuing the fewest on average at 35 and 36 each year, respectively.

Executive orders issued over time, 2008-2025

The chart below displays the number of executive orders issued over time by Biden, Trump, and Obama during their first terms in office.