post office: see postal service.

United States Government Printing Office: see Government Printing Office, United States.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Office of the (UNHCR), established Jan., 1951, by the General Assembly. It superseded the International Refugee Organization. It seeks permanent solutions to refugee problems, offers international protection to refugees, coordinates the activities of voluntary agencies, and assists the most needy refugee groups. It was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1954 and 1981. In the late 1950s the office of UNHCR aided refugees from Hungary, Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia, and Chinese refugees in Hong Kong. Since the 1960s most of its economic assistance has gone to refugees created by tribal and political conflicts and civil wars. In the 1980s and 90s such conflicts have taken it to the Horn of Africa, Central America, Pakistan, Southeast Asia, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and the former Yugoslavia.

Tenure of Office Act, in U.S. history, measure passed on Mar. 2, 1867, by Congress over the veto of President Andrew Johnson; it forbade the President to remove any federal officeholder appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate without the further approval of the Senate. It also provided that members of the President's cabinet should hold office for the full term of the President who appointed them and one month thereafter, subject to removal by the Senate. With this measure the radical Republicans in Congress hoped to assure the continuance in office of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton and thus prevent any interference with the military occupation of the South in their Reconstruction plan. In order to bring about a court test of the constitutionality of the act, Johnson dismissed Stanton, but the Supreme Court, intimidated by the radicals, refused to pass on the case. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, whom Johnson appointed Secretary ad interim, turned the office back to Stanton when the Senate refused to approve his dismissal. Johnson then appointed Gen. Lorenzo Thomas Secretary of War, but Stanton, barricading himself in the department, refused to yield. Johnson's alleged violation of the Tenure of Office Act was the principal charge in the impeachment proceedings against him. When this move failed (May, 1868), Stanton finally gave up. The act, considerably modified in Grant's administration, was in large part repealed in 1887, and in 1926 the Supreme Court declared its principles unconstitutional.

Office of War Information (OWI), U.S. agency created (1942) during World War II to consolidate government information services. The OWI absorbed the functions of the Office of Facts and Figures, the Office of Government Reports, the division of information of the Office for Emergency Management, and the foreign information service of the Coordinator of Information. Elmer Davis was named director. Besides coordinating the release of war news for domestic use, the office established an overseas branch, under Robert E. Sherwood, which launched a huge information and propaganda campaign abroad. Congressional opposition to the domestic operations of the OWI resulted in increasingly curtailed funds, and by 1944 the OWI operated mostly in the foreign field, contributing to undermining enemy morale. The agency was abolished in 1945, and its foreign functions were transferred to the Dept. of State.

Office of Strategic Services (OSS), U.S. agency created (1942) during World War II under the jurisdiction of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the purpose of obtaining information about enemy nations and of sabotaging their war potential and morale. Headed by William J. Donovan, the OSS comprised personnel from all the branches of the armed forces as well as civilians. Although the "cloak and dagger" section gained the most publicity after the war, some of the most valuable work was done by the research and analysis section. Behind enemy lines, the OSS acted as a liaison with the underground in Nazi-occupied countries. The OSS was disbanded in 1945. Later many of its functions were assumed by the Central Intelligence Agency.

Office of Price Administration (OPA), U.S. federal agency in World War II, established to prevent wartime inflation. The OPA issued (Apr., 1942) a general maximum-price regulation that made prices charged in Mar., 1942, the ceiling prices for most commodities. Ceilings were also imposed on residential rents. These regulations were gradually modified and extended by OPA administrators—notably Leon Henderson (1941-42), Prentiss H. Brown (1943), and Chester B. Bowles (1943-46)—until almost 90% of the retail food prices were frozen. Prices continued to rise, however, and new drives to secure compliance resulted; ultimately the OPA succeeded in keeping consumer prices relatively stable during the remaining war years. Besides controlling prices, the OPA was also empowered to ration scarce consumer goods in wartime. Tires, automobiles, sugar, gasoline, fuel oil, coffee, meats, and processed foods were ultimately rationed. At the end of the war rationing was abandoned, and price controls were gradually abolished. The agency was finally disbanded in 1947.

Government Printing Office, United States (GPO), federal bureau originally authorized in 1860 that performs printing and binding for Congress and federal departments and agencies, distributes government publications in printed and electronic formats, and reprints documents for public purchase. It sells, through mail order and government bookstores, approximately 12,000 printed and electronic publications, and administers the program through which selected government publications are made available at some 1,350 depository libraries throughout the United States. The GPO also provides on-line access to the Congessional Record and other key government publications.

General Land Office, established (1812) in the U.S. Treasury Dept. and transferred (1849) to the U.S. Dept. of the Interior. Empowered to survey, manage, and dispose of the public domain, the office administered the preemption acts, homestead laws, and all legislation affecting public lands. After 1900 it was more concerned with conservation of the remaining land. In 1946 it was consolidated with the Grazing Service into the Bureau of Land Management.

Consumer Affairs, Office of, agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, established 1971. The office advises and represents the president on matters of consumer interest, and analyzes and coordinates activities of the federal government in the area of consumer protection. It conducts investigations and surveys on matters of consumer interest, takes action on individual consumer complaints, publishes the Consumer's Resource Handbook, and presses for legislation to protect the consumer.

Office established in 1951 to give legal, social, economic, and political aid to refugees. The UNHCR is the successor of the International Refugee Organization. Its first efforts focused on Europeans displaced by World War II; it has since assisted refugees in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Yugoslavia. It is based in Geneva and is financed by voluntary government contributions. The office won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1954 and 1981.

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(1867) Law forbidding the U.S. president to remove civil officers without the consent of the Senate. Passed by the Radical Republicans over the veto of Pres. Andrew Johnson, the measure sought to prevent Johnson from removing cabinet members who supported Congress's harsh Reconstruction policies. When Johnson tried to dismiss his secretary of war, Edwin M. Stanton, an ally of the Radical Republicans, Congress began impeachment proceedings against him. The law was partially repealed in 1869 and completely repealed in 1887; in 1926 it was found unconstitutional.

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