Monday, February 20, 2017

Federal Holiday - Washington's Birthday, Not Presidents' Day

Today is Presidents' Day. Some schools are closed. Non-essential federal offices are closed. Don't check your mailbox. There will be no mail delivery by the U.S. Post Office.

So, it's a federal holiday today, but it's not Presidents' Day.

We're celebrating George Washington's birthday.


5 U.S. Code § 6103 - Holidays
(a) The following are legal public holidays:

New Year’s Day, January 1.

Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., the third Monday in January.

Washington’s Birthday, the third Monday in February.

Memorial Day, the last Monday in May.

Independence Day, July 4.

Labor Day, the first Monday in September.

Columbus Day, the second Monday in October.

Veterans Day, November 11.

Thanksgiving Day, the fourth Thursday in November.

Christmas Day, December 25.

No Presidents' Day.

No law has changed the holiday's name from Washington's Birthday to Presidents' Day. There has been no act by Congress to change the observance of Washington's Birthday.

The Uniform Holiday Bill, signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in June 1968, provided for Washington's Birthday to be celebrated on the third Monday in February.

Today is not a day we honor both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. It's not a day designated to honor all presidents.

Today we celebrate George Washington.



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