COLLECTION FINDING AID



FRANK G. ZARB PAPERS, (1970) 1974-77 (1979)

Frank G. Zarb, Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration

Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration;
Executive Director of the Energy Resources Council



SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Frank Zarb acted as the President's chief energy advisor during the Ford administration.  His papers include drafts of legislation, congressional testimony, and statistical reports on a variety of energy‑related topics including coal conversion, liquefied natural gas, energy conservation, oil imports and production incentives.

QUANTITY
4.8 linear feet (ca. 9,600 pages) of textual material, 148 photographs, 2 audiotapes, and 6 framed cartoons

DONOR
Frank G. Zarb (accession numbers 81-43, 81-47, 82-12, 82-17, 83-33, 85-43, 2009-34; 2010-1; and 2010-9)

ACCESS
Open.  Some items are temporarily restricted under terms of the donor's deed of gift, a copy of which is available on request, or under National Archives and Records Administration general restrictions (36 CFR 1256).

COPYRIGHT
Frank Zarb donated to the United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.  The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to remain with them.  Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain.

Prepared by Leesa Tobin, February 1982 (Revised July 1988); revised by William H. McNitt, January 2012 [s:\bin\findaid\zarb, frank - papers.doc]

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION


Frank G. Zarb


1935 - Born in Brooklyn, New York

1957 - B.B.A., Hofstra University

1957‑58 - Served in the U.S. Army

1958‑62 - Management trainee for Cities Service Oil Company

1962 - M.B.A., Hofstra University

1962‑69 - General partner for Goodbody and Company

1969‑71 - Executive vice president for CBWL‑Hayden Stone, Inc.

1972 - Assistant Secretary of Labor for Administration

1972‑73 - Executive vice president for Hayden Stone, Inc.

1973‑74 - Associate Director of the Office of Management and Budget for Energy and Natural Resources

Dec. 1973‑Jan. 1974 - Temporary assignment as acting assistant administrator of the Federal Energy Office

October 1974 - Appointed executive director of the Energy Resources Council

1974‑77 - Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration

1977‑78 - Executive vice president for Shearson, Hayden, Stone, Inc.

1978‑88 - General partner of Lazard Freres & Co.

1988-93 - CEO and Chairman of Smith Barney

1993-94 - Vice Chairman and Group Executive Travelers Group

1994-97 - CEO, Alexander & Alexander Services, Inc. (insurance brokerage company)

1997-2001 - Chairman and CEO of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) and head of the NASD's stock exchange, the NASDAQ

2001-Present - Managing Director and Senior Advisor, Hellman & Friedman LLC


INTRODUCTION

Frank G. Zarb was appointed as administrator of the Federal Energy Administration by President Ford in December 1974.  He replaced John Sawhill, who resigned in October 1974 after conflicts over his support of an increased gasoline tax and mandatory energy conservation measures.  Zarb, then serving as executive director of the newly created Energy Resources Council under Rogers C. B. Morton, Secretary of the Interior, and involved with a variety of energy-related issues, was deemed a logical choice to succeed Sawhill.  In 1973, Zarb had assisted Treasury Secretary William Simon in organizing the Federal Energy Office, predecessor to the Federal Energy Administration, thus was familiar with its structure and function.

As executive director of the Energy Resources Council and administrator of the Federal Energy Administration, Zarb wielded considerable power over the nation's energy policies.  The Energy Resources Council was charged with formulating energy policy proposals for the President and the coordination of the activities of the various federal agencies involved in energy matters.  As administrator of the Federal Energy Administration, Zarb advised the President on all aspects of domestic and foreign energy policies and oversaw the price and regulatory operations of the agency.

The oil embargo in December 1973 had alerted the government of the need for planning on a national scale in the event of a similar situation arising in the future.  One of Zarb's first tasks as administrator of FEA was to overhaul the program of fuel allocation to the states and insure that rationing measures could be introduced within ninety days of a crisis alert.  He was also involved in the formulation of the energy proposals that the President presented to Congress in his State of the Union address on January 15, 1975.  The plan called for higher taxes and prices for imported oil, the decontrolling of prices for imported oil, and the imposition of a windfall profits tax.  It was Zarb's responsibility to try to achieve a compromise between the viewpoints of the administration and Congress.  As the President's chief energy spokesman, Zarb appeared before congressional committees, at meetings of oil company executive and state energy officials, and traveled across the country with the President seeking support for administration policies.

This collection contains copies of Zarb’s memoranda to the President, testimony before Congress and speeches to various organizations, a subject file, and scrapbook material.  The papers document many of the energy issues facing the Ford administration and cover the period from December 1974 to January 1977, with a small amount of earlier and later material. 

Frank Zarb's original gift of papers to the Gerald R. Ford Library was processed and made available for research in February 1982.  The Library has received several small accretions and added them to the collection since then.  In addition to the material described in this finding aid, the Library received several cartoon drawings from Mr. Zarb.  These are now part of the artifact holdings at the Ford Presidential Museum.

Related Materials (January 2012)
Related materials in the Ford Library include the files of the U.S. Energy Resources Council and of several members of the Domestic Council including James Cannon, Michael Raoul-Duval, Glenn Schleede and Dennis Barnes.  There are also energy-related materials in several White House Central Files categories and the files and papers of William Seidman.  International energy policy and issues are documented in numerous sub-collections from National Security Advisers Kissinger and Scowcroft and the National Security Council staff.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Memoranda to the President, 1974-77.  (Boxes 1-3, 0.9 linear feet)
Memoranda to the President drafted by Zarb or members of his immediate staff, particularly John Hill and Eric Zausner.  The memoranda include biweekly statistics concerning oil imports, domestic production, usage and conservation.  Also included are proposals for meetings or telephone calls; talking points designed to aid the President in preparing for energy meetings; background material on a variety of energy-related topics; information on the progress of legislative initiatives; and early drafts of the President's energy messages.  Major topics include: decontrol of oil prices, nuclear energy, production incentives, conversion to coal, the Alaska pipeline, liquified natural gas, windfall profits tax, conservation, divestiture and the price of oil imports.  Zarb also provided the President with briefings on energy policy options as developed by the Energy Resources Council and talking points on energy to aid him in preparing for Cabinet meetings.  Attached to several of Zarb's memoranda are Presidential responses.  It is unclear whether or not this series of memoranda is complete. Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

Congressional Committee Testimony File, 1975-76.  (Boxes 3-4, 0.6 linear feet)
Transcripts of Zarb's testimony before House and Senate committees and subcommittees.  He presented the administration's views on energy issues including proposed legislation and the provisions of the President's comprehensive energy program.  He also testified concerning various aspects of the FEA's operations and budget. Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

Subject File, 1974-78.  (Boxes 4-9, 1.8 linear feet)
Correspondence, primarily between Zarb and members of Congress or between Zarb and officials in government agencies; briefing materials on major legislation and aspects of the administration’s energy program; Federal Energy Administration press releases and publications; copies of Zarb’s column, “Energy Sense” and other articles written by and about him; newspaper clippings; and abstracts from the New York Times Information Bank of all the articles written about Zarb and the FEA during the Ford administration.  Most of the correspondence with members of Congress consists of letters of appreciation Zarb received when he left the FEA in 1977.  The Energy Resources Council material concerns the coal strike in 1974. Arranged alphabetically by subject.

View container list for this series

Speech File, 1975-76.  (Boxes 9-10, 0.7 linear feet)
Speeches delivered by Zarb to various organizations covering a variety of energy issues. Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

Scrapbook File, 1970-79.  (Boxes 10-12, 0.8 linear feet)
Newspaper and magazine clippings, photographs, and correspondence with congressmen and governors removed from albums.  The scrapbook file, a later accretion, includes many duplicate items from the above listed series.  Library staff removed all items from the volumes and filed them in folders.  The photographs from the scrapbooks are described separately in the Audiovisual Materials series.  Topics include Zarb's activities and energy-related issues.
Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

Audiovisual Materials, 1973-77.  (Boxes AV1-2, 0.8 linear feet)
This series consists of 148 photographs and two audiotapes (a “Face the Nation” appearance on August 31, 1975 and an interview conducted on June 20, 1976).

View container list for this series

Museum Artifacts
Six framed political cartoons were transferred to the Ford Museum artifact collection. There is no container list for this series. More information about the cartoons can be obtained from the Ford Museum.

CONTAINER LIST

With the exception of the Scrapbook File, the Audiovisual Materials, and the Museum Artifacts, this entire collection is available in digital form. Click on folder titles to view contents.

Box 1 - Memoranda to the President

Box 2 - Memoranda to the President

Box 3 - Memoranda to the President

Box 3 (Continued) - Congressional Committee Testimony File

  • January 31, 1975, Senate Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
  • February 7, 1975, Senate Committee on Commerce
  • February 10, 1975, Senate Finance Committee
  • February 13, 1975, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • February 17, 1975, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • February 26, 1975, House Appropriations Subcommittee for the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
  • February 27, 1975, Joint Economic Committee
  • March 3, 1975, House Ways and Means Committee
  • March 11, 1975, Senate Interior Committee and Senate Armed Services Committee
  • March 13, 1975, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce - Subcommittee on Public Health and Environment
  • March 20, 1975, Senate Committee on Public Works - Subcommittee on Environmental Pollution
  • April 16, 1975, Senate Committee on Government Operations
  • May 7, 1975, House Appropriations Subcommittee on Appropriations for the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
  • May 7, 1975, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs - Subcommittee on Minerals, Materials and Fuels
  • May 7, 1975, Joint Committee on Atomic Energy - Ad hoc Subcommittee
  • May 9, 1975, House Government Operations Committee - Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy and Natural Resources
  • May 14, 1975, House Committee on Science and Technology - Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development and Demonstration
  • May 19, 1975, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • June 3, 1975, House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs - Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment and Subcommittee on Mines and Mining
  • June 23, 1975, Senate Committee on the Judiciary - Subcommittee on Administrative Practice and Procedure
  • June 23, 1975, Senate Committee on Public Works

Box 4 - Congressional Committee Testimony File

  • ca. July 1975, Nomination of FEA Officials Eric Zausner and Thomas Noel
  • July 16, 1975, Senate Committee on Government Operations - Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and Senate Committee on Commerce - Special Subcommittee on Oil and Natural Gas Production and Distribution
  • July 28, 1975, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • July 31, 1975, Senate Committee on Government Operations - Subcommittee on Reports, Accounting and Management
  • September 8, 1975, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • September 15, 1975, Senate Committee on Commerce
  • September 23, 1975, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • September 25, 1975, House Committee on Science and Technology
  • November 18, 1975, Senate Select Committee on Small Business
  • December 3, 1975, Joint Committee on Atomic Energy
  • January 23, 1976, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • January 26, 1976, House Appropriations Committee - Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies
  • February 11, 1976, House Committee on Science and Technology - Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development and Demonstration
  • March 16, 1976, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • March 16, 1976, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • April 1, 1976, House Committee on Science and Technology - Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development and Demonstration
  • April 1, 1976, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • April 5, 1976, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • April 12, 1976, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
  • April 14, 1976, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • April 26, 1976, House Appropriations Committee - Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies
  • April 29, 1976, Senate Appropriations Committee - Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies
  • May 17, 1976, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce
  • May 24, 1976, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • June 3, 1976, Senate Judiciary Committee
  • June 8, 1976, Joint Economic Committee - Subcommittee on Energy
  • June 29, 1976, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • June 30, 1976, Senate Foreign Relations Committee - Subcommittee on Near East and South Asian Affairs
  • July 19, 1976, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
  • August 6, 1976, House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee - Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
  • September 13, 1976, Joint Economic Committee

Box 4 (Continued) - Subject File

Box 5 - Subject File

Box 6 - Subject File

Box 7 - Subject File

Box 8 - Subject File

Box 9 - Subject File

Box 9 (Continued) - Speech File

Box 10 - Speech File

Box 10 (Continued) - Scrapbook File

  • Correspondence - Congratulatory on Leaving FEA, A-Z (1)-(2)
  • Correspondence - Gerald R. Ford, January 1977 - April 1977
  • Correspondence - New Members of Congress and Governors
  • Meetings and Appointments Book
  • Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (Publications)

Box 11 - Scrapbook File

  • Scrapbook, June 1970 – August 1975

Box 12 - Scrapbook File

  • Scrapbook, September 1975 - 1979 and Undated

Box AV1 - Audiovisual Materials

Folder Accession Number Description

1

AV82-93-1 to 22

Middle East Tour, 6/72
2 AV82-93-23 to 32 Middle East Tour, 6/72

3

AV82-94-1 to 4

Irish Tourist Board Reception, ND

4

AV82-95

Frank Zarb and Nelson Rockefeller, ND, color

5

AV82-96-1 to 9

Frank Zarb portraits

6

AV82-97

Frank Zarb portrait, ND, (Morris Berman, Pittsburgh Post Gazette)

7

AV82-98

Address before the National Farm Institute, 3/76

8

AV82-99

Frank Zarb and Henry Jackson, ND

9

AV82-100

Frank Zarb and Rep. George Mahon, 1/23/75, inscribed by Mahon

10

AV82-101

Frank Zarb and Gov. George Busbee, ND, color, inscribed by Busbee

11

AV82-102

American Automobile Association Meeting, 9/75

12

AV82-103

Frank Zarb and Sen. Jennings Randolph, ND

13

AV82-104

Address before the Southern Methodist University Business School, ND

14

AV82-105-1, 1 to 20

White House Photo Office photographs, 1974-1/76

15

AV82-105-2, 1 to 28

White House Photo Office photographs, color, 1974-1/76
16 AV82-105-3, 1-28 White House Photo Office photographs, 1974-1/76
17 AV82-106-1 to 6 White House Photo Office photographs, color, 1974-8/75

18

AV82-107-1 to 9

Frank Zarb portraits, color

19

AV-82-108

Frank Zarb with Nelson Rockefeller and the Vice President's staff, 11/24/76

20

AV82-109

Signing ceremony with President Nixon, 7/19/74

21

AV82-110-1 to 3

White House Photo Office photographs, oversize

22

AV82-111-1 to 2

Frank Zarb with President Ford, ND

22

AV82-111-1 to 2

Zarb portrait, ND

23

AV82-112-1 to 4

Frank Zarb and President Ford aboard a Louisiana off-shore oil rig, 4/28/75, color, oversize

23

AV82-112-1 to 4

Frank Zarb in his office, 1/6/77, color

24

AV82-113-1, 1 to 6

Trip to Japan, 6/76

25

AV82-113-2

Frank Zarb interview with A. Akagi, 6/20/76, audio cassette
26 AV82-114 Two interview audio cassettes

Box AV2 - Audiovisual Materials

Folder Accession Number Description

1

AV89-9-1 to 2

Unidentified awards ceremony, ND (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 6/70-8/73)

2

AV89-9-3 to 8

Hodgson University ceremony, ca. 1973, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 9/73-12/73)

3

AV89-9-9 to 10

FEO Regional Directors, Fall 1973, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 9/73-12/73)

4

AV89-9-11

Frank Zarb with Robert Nipp, William Saxbe, Bill Usery, William Simon, Claude Brinegar, and Mike Duval in the White House, 2/8/74, color, (WH Photo E2193-3A) (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 9/73-12/73)

5

AV89-9-12

Frank Zarb and Earl Butz, 2/11/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 1/74-2/74)

5

AV89-9-13

Frank Zarb with Earl Butz and his staff, 2/11/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 1/74-2/74)

6

AV89-9-14 to 18

Frank Zarb with Miss USA, Amanda Jones, 3/12/74, color, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/74-10/74)

7

AV89-9-19

Frank Zarb with National Coal Association President Carl E. Baggi and Vice President Joseph W. Mullen, 6/16/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/74-10/74)

8

AV89-9-20

GRF and Frank Zarb in the White House, 8/13/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/74-10/74)

9

AV89-9-21 to 24

Frank Zarb with Native Americans, ca. 11/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/74-10/74)

10

AV89-9-25

GRF and Frank Zarb in Vail, Colorado, 12/74, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/74-12/74)

11

AV89-9-26 to 28

Energy and Research Development Administrators with GRF, 1/17/75, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 1/75-2/75)

12

AV89-9-29 to 30

Frank Zarb addressing an unidentified group at the Washington Hilton, 1975, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 1/75-2/75)

13

AV89-9-31

"MEET THE PRESS," 3/2/75, (Scrapbooks, Box 11, 3/75-4/75)

14

AV89-9-32

Frank Zarb with Mrs. Virginia Garrett, Montgomery, Alabama, Citizens for Action Committee, 6/17/75, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, 6/75)

15

AV89-9-33

National Industrial Energy Conservation Council, 6-18-75, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, 6/75)

16

AV89-9-34

Frank Zarb in Denver, Colorado, 9/26/75, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, 9/75)

17

AV89-9-35 to 39

Frank Zarb with New England area consumer groups in Boston, Massachusetts, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, 1/76-2/76)

18

AV89-9-40 to 41

Frank Zarb at Quincy College, 5/16/76, color, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, 1/77-4/77)

19

AV89-9-42

Frank Zarb addressing an unidentified group, ND, (Scrapbooks, Box 12, undated)

20

AV89-9-43

"FACE THE NATION," 8/31/75, audiotape, (Scrapbooks, Box 12)