Executive Order

Executive Order  No. 260: Establishing the Massachusetts Advisory Commission to commemorate the bicentennial of the United States Constitution

Date: 02/19/1986
Issuer: Michael S. Dukakis
Mass Register: No. 509
Superseded by: Executive Order 307

Table of Contents

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts played a vital historical role in the development of our Federal constitution; and

WHEREAS, in the fall and winter of 1786, the citizens of western Massachusetts, in what is known as "Shays' Rebellion", rebelled against oppressive judicial and legislative institutions and sparked the formation of the constitutional convention; and

WHEREAS, on September 17, 1787, the leaders of Massachusetts approved the proposed constitution at the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention; and

WHEREAS, the Constitution of the United States was modeled in part on the constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, created in l780 by John Adams; and

WHEREAS, on February 6, 1788, Massachusetts delegates ratified the United States constitution, and

WHEREAS, these inspiring efforts of two hundred years ago were only the beginning of a continued effort by the people of Massachusetts to develop a more secure union; and

WHEREAS, the upcoming period of bicentennial commemoration of the United States Constitution provides an opportunity for citizens in Massachusetts to review and appreciate anew the principles of the American constitutional system,

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Michael S. Dukakis, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, by virtue of the authority vested in me as Supreme Executive Magistrate, do hereby order as follows:

  1. There is hereby established a Massachusetts Advisory Commission to Commemorate the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution. The Commission shall be chaired by the chief justice of the Supreme Judicial Court. Members of the Commission shall be appointed by the Governor and shall include historians, scholars, members of the bar, representatives of the community at large, and the following ex-officio members: the secretary of state, the attorney general, the senate president, the speaker of the house, and the Governor's chief legal counsel.
  2. The purpose of the Commission shall be to ensure that the Commonwealth's commemoration of the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution is both a joyous and proud celebration and an education for school children and adults across the state. To that end, the Commission shall recommend appropriate activities to engender greater knowledge and understanding of the Constitution as a living document, with particular emphasis on how it affects each of us in our daily life.
  3. The Commission shall be in effect at least until February 6, 1988, the 200th anniversary of Massachusetts' ratification of the United States Constitution. On or before that date the Governor shall determine whether to continue the Commission in order to further commemorate the Constitution and specifically the Bicentennial of the Bill of Rights.

Given at the Executive Chamber in Boston this 19th day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and eighty-six, and of the Independence of the United States of America two hundred and ten.

Michael S. Dukakis, Governor
Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Michael Joseph Connolly
Secretary of the Commonwealth

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