RICHARD NIXON: 1913-1994 : Federal Offices to Close for Day of Mourning

WASHINGTON —  In declaring Wednesday a national day of mourning and asking people to go to their place of worship to grieve, President Clinton has accorded Richard Nixon’s passing the same honor granted other Presidents.

All federal offices, Congress and the Supreme Court will close in a gesture of respect for Nixon, the nation’s 37th President, who died Friday.

The Postal Service will suspend regular mail delivery and window service for the day, although mail processing and transport will continue. Special Delivery and Express Mail will be delivered.

The honor was a matter of choice for Clinton. There are no rules or obligations attached to the death of former Presidents.

Closing all federal offices and services, including the Postal Service, will cost taxpayers more than $330 million, according to figures from the federal Office of Personnel Management. Of that total, $308 million is the amount it costs to fund the government payroll each day, and on Wednesday federal employees will be paid despite having the day off.

In addition, there will be an added cost of $23 million in “premium pay” for selected government workers ordered to remain on the job in case of emergencies, said Janice Lechance, a spokeswoman for the personnel agency.

A spokesman for the Office of Management and Budget noted that federal agencies will have to cut back elsewhere, including possibly on services, to make up for the $23 million. The money will not be added to the federal deficit.

In addition to the federal government, the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq market will close.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange said it plans to close its stock index futures and options contracts Wednesday, but the Chicago Board of Trade plans a regular trading session.

The Supreme Court will be closed, but decisions by other federal courts will be left to the chief judge in each circuit.

In Orange County, all public schools in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District will close. Capital Bank’s Imperial Highway branch also will close at noon.

But most local businesses will remain open. For many in the Yorba Linda area, the anticipated crush of well-wishers could mean big money.

Polly’s Pies, within walking distance of the Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace, “got a lot of business Saturday and Sunday,” said Jeff LaPere, operations manager. “We’re expecting a lot of people on Wednesday.”

Mimi’s Cafe, also nearby, will bring in an extra cook and additional restaurant help on Wednesday.

“We are . . . hoping to do extra business,” General Manager Steve Shaw said.

The closure of federal offices and courts in memory of a President is not unusual. Every President since Harry S. Truman has been given at least a day of mourning. Federal records do not go back further.

John F. Kennedy received four days of mourning, beginning with Friday Nov. 22, 1963--the afternoon of his assassination--and extending through the following Monday.

Nixon ordered a day of mourning and all federal offices closed for Dwight D. Eisenhower in March, 1969, for Truman in January, 1973, and for Lyndon B. Johnson one month later.

Times staff writers Greg Johnson and Dean Takahashi contributed to this report.