Executive Council (Meridon)

Executive Council
Type
Type	Cabinet
Leadership
President of Meridon	Yui Townley
Vice President of Meridon	John Argus
Seats	15
Meeting place
Cabinet Room, Whiteriver Manor Cordelia, Meridon

The Executive Council of Meridon is a Cabinet composed of the seniormost officials of the Federal Executive Departments, and serves as the primary advisory body to the President of Meridon on all matters of state. Composed of officials appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, the officials on these body are not elected officials. The size and membership of the Council are set by law, however it is common practice for presidents to appoint temporary (albeit nonvoting) members of the Cabinet to advise on special matters, most usually in response to political crises or handling complex issues of policy. Currently, the Council consists of 13 permanent members and 2 adjutant members.

Formally, the council is headed by the Vice President of Meridon, however in practice the President regularly heads all functions and meetings of the Council.

Structure

The Federal Executive Departments operate primarily as envelope organizations, and oversee and contain multiple subordinate organizations that more directly control and administrate specific functions of day to day life. Officers of the Executive Council primarily exist to receive, develop, and interpret policy instructions per the legislature and the executive, and translate these goals to said organizations. All Federal officers serve exclusive at the president's pleasure. While appointments to these offices require the approval of the Senate, these officers may be dismissed at will.

The structure of members on the Cabinet, however, is set by law, and the only permanent voting members of the Council are those who occupy offices enumerated to them. Adjutant members are generally appointed to each individual president's cabinet, and a variety have been appointed in times where additional and more specific advice is required. The President is entitled to appoint five such members. Of these, the Undersecretary of Intelligence is generally re-appointed by each following commission, and the Undersecretary for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs has been reappointed twice so far, first being appointed in 2012.

The cabinet's structure has undergone a number of changes since its first inception in the First Union of Meridon, including the addition, reduction, splitting, and renaming of parties. The current-day departments of State, Defense, Treasury, and Justice have existed consistently in some form since its first inception. The newest addition to the permanent membership of the Council is the Homeland Department, which was created as a department and added in 1989.

Executive Council Officers

Department	Incumbent	Notes
Vice President	John Argus Vice President	The Vice President serves as the formal head of the Executive Council, and is elected alongside the President. They will head the council in the absence of the President.
State Department	Avery Reagan State Secretary	The State Department is the principal office for Meridonian foreign diplomatic and humanitarian affairs, as well as implementing Meridonian foreign policy.
Treasury Department	Kaewa Arepata Treasurer	The Treasury Department is responsible for all monetary production, circulation, and income revenue of the Federal government, as well as supervising domestic financial institutions.
Defense Department	Jason Meritt Defense Secretary	The Defense Department directly oversees the Meridon Defense Forces and its operations, and is responsible for implementing defense and military policy.
Justice Department	Kimberly Ammont Attorney General	The Justice Department serves as the legal arm of the Meridonian government, which focuses on the enforcement of Federal laws and conducting legal actions in support of policy goals.
Agriculture Department	Luis Pompeao Agriculture Secretary	The Agriculture Department oversees all agricultural and food related actions of the Meridonian government, including farming subsidies and regulation, food stamp and nutritional assistance, food safety standards, and other such actions in support of both health and commerce.
Homeland Department	Maro Rakena Homeland Secretary	The Homeland Department is responsible for public safety and oversees all federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies, including the Meridonian Intelligence Agency, although intelligence interests are typically represented by the Undersecretary for Intelligence at the Cabinet.
Interior Department	Raione Hakopa Interior Secretary	The Interior Department is responsible for the administration, protection, and development of natural resources and federally protected areas within Meridon, and is also responsible for overseeing tribal Tangaran affairs.
Health Services Department	Dr. Michelle Karson Health Services Secretary	The Health Services Department is responsible for the administration of all government health related programs, including the national health infrastructure and responding to disease and epidemics.
Commerce Department	Jeffrey Ratson Commerce Secretary	The Commerce Department is responsible for overseeing all economic opportunities relating to Meridon and encouraging growth and sustainability in the economy, as well as implementing and enforcing labor regulations.
Education Department	Tia Coburn Education Secretary	The Education Department oversees, provides funding for, and administrates the nationwide network of schools across Meridon.
Transport Department	Roger Murkson Transport Secretary	The Transport Department is responsible for the funding, support, and development of national transport infrastructure, and directly oversees transport industries including shipping, trucking, aviation and others.
National Development Directorate	Ian Marcus Director, National Development Director	The National Development Directorate is responsible for overseeing and funding all federal development and infrastructure plans, as well as enforcing laws related to such developments.
Energy Department	Joseph Honors Energy Secretary	The Energy Department oversees the energy grid of Meridon, enforces energy law, and helps to provide for energy policy.
Adjutant Officers
Meridonian Intelligence Agency	Michael McVenture Undersecretary for Intelligence	The Meridonian Intelligence Agency, principally consisting of the Abroad Intelligence Service and the Domestic Security Agency, conduct intelligence and information-gathering for the Federal Government. Although subjunct to the Homeland Department, the intelligence community has been directly represented by an adjutant since 1975.
Department for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs	Kaori Kawakami Undersecretary for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs	The Department for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs is responsible for providing support for immigrants, refugees, and other underpriviliged members of society. It has been a Cabinet adjutant position since 2012, when the Department was formed from mergers in the Health Services Department and National Development Directorate.

• This list is as provided by the Executive Office of the President, 2 May 2021.

Membership

The membership of the Executive Council consists of the Vice President as chairperson, and with the 13 heads of the Federal Executive Departments as permanent members. There is no prerequisite for membership on the council, however while sitting on the council, members may not serve as active members of the Meridon Defense Forces, be employed in any paid capacity or receiving funds from any corporation, and may not be sitting members of the Federal Council.

Composition

As of the current Townley Council, the Council consists of 12 executive officers and 2 adjutant officers. The most recent addition was Dr. Michelle Karson, appointed as Health Service Secretary on 03 January 2022. The longest-tenured member currently on the council is Joseph Honors, who has been Energy Secretary since 06 March 2015.

Adjutant Officers

Adjutant officers are appointed to the Cabinet directly by the President, and do not require approval from the Senate. Like permanent members, they serve at the President's pleasure but do not contribute to votes. A variety of adjutant officers have to meet the same requirements for membership as permanent members, with the exception being that active duty commissioned officers of the Meridonian Defense Forces may serve on the council given that they meet all other requirements and receive Senatorial approval.

Undersecretary for Intelligence

The Undersecretary for Intelligence is the appointed head of the Meridonian Intelligence Agency, responsible for both domestic and international intelligence work. Although subordinated to the Homeland Secretary, due to the increasing need for more direct access to intelligence information the Undersecretary for Intelligence has been included as a non-voting cabinet member since 1975.

Undersecretary for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs

The Undersecretary for Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs conducts and coordinates administrative support for refugees, immigrants, and underprivileged peoples within Meridon as well as advising the Council on actions to support these. The Department of Welfare, Immigration and Refugee Affairs was formed from a merger of multiple departments from the Health and National Development Directorate in 2012.