Federal holidays in the United States

In the United States, a federal holiday is a holiday recognized by the United States Government. Non-essential federal government offices are closed. All federal employees are paid for the holiday; those who are required to work on the holiday receive wages for that day in addition to holiday pay. Private banks, stock and futures exchanges are generally closed on these days as well.

List of Holidays

Federal holidays are designated by the United States Congress in Title V of the United States Code (5 U.S.C. § 6103).[1]

Constitutionally, there are no "national holidays" in the United States because Congress only has authority to create holidays for federal institutions (including federally-owned properties) and employees, and for the District of Columbia. Instead, there are federal holidays, state holidays, city holidays, and so on.

Currently, there are eleven U.S. Federal holidays, most (but not all) of which are also state holidays.

Date	Official Name	Remarks
January 1	New Year's Day	Celebrates beginning of the Gregorian calendar year. Festivities include countdowns to midnight (12:00 AM).
Third Monday in January	Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.	Honors Martin Luther King, Jr., Civil Rights leader; combined with other holidays in several states (King's birthday was January 15)
January 20, every fourth year, following Presidential election	Inauguration Day	Swearing-in of President of the United States and other elected federal officials. Observed only by federal government employees in Washington, D.C., and certain counties and cities of Maryland and Virginia, in order to relieve congestion that occurs with this major event. Note: Takes place on January 21 if the 20th is a Sunday (although the President is still privately inaugurated on the 20th).
Third Monday in February	Washington's Birthday	Honors George Washington. Often popularly observed as "Presidents Day" in recognition of other American presidents, such as Abraham Lincoln (who was born February 12). The legal name of the federal holiday, however, is "Washington's Birthday", not "Presidents Day". (historically observed on February 22, prior to passage of the Monday Holiday Bill by Congress)
Last Monday in May	Memorial Day	Also known as "Decoration Day", Memorial Day originated in the nineteenth century as a day to remember the soldiers who gave their lives in the American Civil War by decorating their graves with flowers. Later, the practice of decorating graves came to include members of ones own family, whether they saw military service or not. Memorial Day is traditionally the beginning of the summer recreational season in America. (historically observed on May 30, prior to the Monday Holiday Bill)
July 4	Independence Day	Celebrates the signing of the Declaration of Independence. More commonly known as "the Fourth of July".
First Monday in September	Labor Day	Celebrates achievements of workers and the labor movement. Labor Day traditionally marks the end of the summer recreational season in America. The following day often marks the beginning of autumn classes in primary and secondary schools.
Second Monday in October	Columbus Day	Honors Christopher Columbus, who landed in the Americas on October 12, 1492. In some areas it is also a celebration of Italian-American culture and heritage. (historically observed on October 12, prior to the Monday holiday bill)
November 11	Veterans Day	Also known as Armistice Day, and very occasionally called "Remembrance Day", 'Veterans Day' is the American name for the international holiday which commemorates the signing of the Armistice ending World War I. In the United States, the holiday honors all veterans of the United States Armed Forces, whether or not they have served in a conflict; but it especially honors the surviving veterans of World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The American holiday was briefly moved to the final Monday in October under the Monday Holiday Bill, but the change was greatly disliked and soundly criticized - among other reasons, because it put Veterans Day out of sync with international observance; so it was restored to November 11.
Fourth Thursday in November	Thanksgiving Day	Traditionally celebrates giving thanks for the autumn harvest, and customarily includes the consumption of a turkey dinner. (historically observed on various days, but finally becoming so fixed to the fourth Thursday in November in the hearts and minds of Americans, that Americans rebelled (albeit politely) when President Franklin Delano Roosevelt attempted to move it to the third Thursday of November, at the request of numerous powerful American merchants)
December 25	Christmas Day	A holiday that celebrates Santa Claus, observed on 25 December. Aspects of the holiday include decorations, emphasis on family togetherness, kindness and goodwill toward all people.

• Federal Holidays Calendars from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

The official names came from the laws that defines holidays for federal employees. The "Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr." holiday is commonly called "Martin Luther King Day", and the "Washington's Birthday" holiday is commonly called "Presidents' Day". Independence Day is often called "The 4th of July".

New Year's Day, Independence Day, Veterans Day and Christmas Day are observed on the same calendar date each year, unless one falls on a weekend. Holidays that fall on a Saturday are observed on the previous Friday, and those that fall on a Sunday are observed the following Monday. The other holidays always fall on a particular day of the week.

Federal law cannot compel state, municipal or other local governments to observe or recognize federal holidays in any way (U.S. Const., Amend. X effectively reserves holiday creation policy to the governments of the several states). Most states 'do' recognize all federal holidays, however, though some are slower than others to adopt them. Arizona and New Hampshire famously - or infamously - refused to establish Martin Luther King, Jr's. birthday as a legal holiday until long after the federal and 48 other state governments had already done so.

Neither are private employers required to observe federal or state holidays, although many businesses will close at least for New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Many businesses also close on Thanksgiving Friday, that is, the day after Thanksgiving.

Public holidays due to Presidential Proclamation

Main article: List of observances in the United States by presidential proclamation

Federal law also provides for the declaration of other public holidays by the President of the United States. Generally the president will provide a reasoning behind the elevation of the day, and call on the people of the United States to observe the day "with appropriate ceremonies and activities." However, there is no requirement that business or government close on these days, and many members of the general public may not be aware that such holidays even exist. Holidays proclaimed in this way may be considered "national" holidays, but are not "federal" holidays.

For example, by Executive Order, President George W. Bush declared January 2, 2007 a "National Day of Mourning" in honor of former President Gerald Ford and ordered all executive departments, independent establishments, and other governmental agencies closed. This did not apply to governmental agencies that should remain open for reasons of national security or defense or other essential public business.

Controversy

Some people have objected to honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. and/or Christopher Columbus with holidays. As a result, Martin Luther King Day took several years to gain national acceptance and is called "Human Rights Day" in some locations. Some local jurisdictions observe "Indigenous Peoples of the Americas Day" instead of "Columbus Day". Similarly, some public schools in the US re-name the vacation taken near and after Christmas "Winter Holiday" or "Winter Break", to avoid the implication that all students are obligated to observe Christian or nominally Christian holidays. State and local legal names for any particular holiday do not have any bearing upon the names of federal holidays.

See also

• Holidays of the United States
• List of observances in the United States by presidential proclamation

External links

• Federal Holidays: Evolution and Application, CRS Report for Congress, 98-301 GOV, updated February 8, 1999, by Stephen W. Stathis
• Northern District of California Court Information
• United States Code: Federal Holidays
• Department of Commerce Federal Holiday Calendar