The following is the entire text of President Richard Nixon's 1970 Executive Order that created the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Department of Commerce.
No. 11564
October 8, 1970, 35 F.R. 15801
TRANSFER OF CERTAIN PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES TO THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE
By virtue of the authority vested in me by section 12 of the Act of February 14, 1993, as amended (15 U.S.C. 1517) 68 and section 12 (d) of the Act of October 15, 1966 (49 U.S.C. 1651 note), 69 as President of the United States, and in further implementation of Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970 transferring certain functions to the Secretary of Commerce and establishing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the Department of Commerce, it is ordered as follows:
Section 1, (a) The following programs and activities are hereby
transferred to the Secretary of Commerce:
(1) The National Oceanographic Instrumentation Center of the Department of
the Navy, Department of Defense.
(2) The National Oceanographic Data Center of the Department of the Navy,
Department of Defense.
(3) The Ocean Station Vessel Meteorological Program of the Department of
the Navy, Department of Defense.
(4) The Trust Territories Upper Air Observation Program of the Department
of the Navy, Department of Defense.
(5) The Hydroclimatic Network Program of the Corps of Engineers of the Department
of the Army, Department of Defense.
(6) The National Data Buoy Development Project of the Coast Guard, Department
of Transportation.
(b) All of the power and authority of the transferor Departments conferred
by law which is related to or incidental to, in support of, or necessary
for, the operation of the programs and activities transferred by sub-section
(a) above, may be utilized by the Secretary of Commerce for the operation
of those programs and activities.
Sec. 2. (a) Such personnel and positions and so much of the property, records,
and unexpended balances of appropriations, allocations, and other funds employed,
used, held, authorized, affected, available, or to be made available in
connection with the operation of the programs and activities transferred
by section 1 hereof from the Department of Defense and the Department of
Transportation as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall
determine shall be transferred from those Departments to the department of
Commerce at such time or times as the Director shall direct.
(b) Subject to the direction of the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget the appropriate officers of the Government shall make necessary
administrative arrangements for the assumption by the Secretary of Commerce
of the programs and activities so transferred.
RICHARD NIXON.
The White House,
October 5, 1970
68, 15 U.S.C.A. 1517.
69, 49 U.S.C.A. 1651 note.

