The secretary of the United States Senate is an officer of the United States Senate. The secretary supervises an extensive array of offices and services to expedite the day-to-day operations of that body. The office is somewhat analogous to that of the clerk of the United States House of Representatives.
The first secretary was chosen on April 8, 1789, two days after the Senate achieved its first quorum for business at the beginning of the 1st United States Congress. From the start, the secretary was responsible for keeping the minutes and records of the Senate, including the records of senators' election, and for receiving and transmitting official messages to and from the president and the House of Representatives, as well as for purchasing supplies. As the Senate grew to become a major national institution, numerous other duties were assigned to the secretary, whose jurisdiction now encompasses clerks, curators, and computers; disbursement of payrolls; acquisition of stationery supplies; education of the Senate pages; and the maintenance of public records. Today, the secretary coordinates two of the largest technology initiatives in Senate history, both designed to bring state-of-the-art efficiency to management of legislative and financial information. The secretary's responsibilities include both legislative and administrative functions.
By agreement of the two parties, the majority leader selects the secretary of the senate, and the election is merely ceremonial. The Senate Officers Clause of Article I, Section III states "The Senate shall chuse their other Officers". The Oath or Affirmation Clause of Article VI provides that "all ... Officers ... of the United States ... shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution", and pursuant to Article VI, the 1st United States Congress passed the Oath Administration Act (that remains in effect) which provides that "the [S]ecretary of the Senate... shall... [take] the oath or affirmation [required by the sixth article of the Constitution of the United States]"., ,
The current secretary (for the 119th United States Congress) is Jackie Barber.
Legislative functions The secretary regularly accompanies the chaplain into the Senate chamber for the opening of the day's session and a seat beside the presiding officer is reserved for the secretary. The secretary examines and signs every act that has been passed by the Senate. In certain parliamentary circumstances, the secretary may also preside over the Senate. The most recent occurrence was on June 28, 2010, after Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, who had been serving as President Pro Tempore died, and Vice President Joseph Biden was absent. On that occasion, Secretary of the Senate Nancy Erickson took the chair briefly until the Senate adopted a resolution to elect Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii as the new president pro tempore.156 Cong. Rec. S5465 (daily ed. June 28, 2010).
The first secretary took the minutes of Senate proceedings, a function continued today by the journal clerk. After the Congressional Record evolved into an official publication, the secretary came to supervise the Senate's reporters of debates and preparation of the Daily Digest. Among other Senate floor staff who report to the secretary are the parliamentarian, bill clerk, and legislative clerk.
Administrative functions The first secretary purchased the quill pens, ink, and parchment needed by eighteenth-century senators. Modern secretaries of the Senate have responsibility for the Senate Stationery Room, a multimillion-dollar retail operation that keeps senators' offices supplied. From the beginning, the secretary served as the Senate's disbursing officer, paying senators their original salary of six dollars a day plus travel expenses. As the Senate grew, a separate financial clerk was appointed under the secretary's jurisdiction.
In recognition of the immediate and historical significance of Senate bills, resolutions, hearings, and reports, the secretary oversees the Office of Printing and Document Services, the Office of Senate Security (which maintains classified documents), the United States Senate Library, the Office of Senate Curator, and the Senate Historical Office. The secretary also maintains the Office of Interparliamentary Services to provide support for those interparliamentary conferences in which the Senate participates and to assist senators in international travel. Also under the secretary's direction, the Office of Public Records collects and makes publicly available documents relating to campaign finance, financial ethics, foreign travel, and lobbying.
In 1789 the secretary was authorized to hire "one principal clerk." This principal clerk, or chief clerk, for many years served primarily as a reading clerk on the Senate floor. But during the 1960s, in response to the secretary's growing administrative duties, the position evolved into that of assistant secretary of the Senate, who oversees the administration of the Secretary's Office, including computers and the secretary's web site. The assistant secretary also performs the functions of the secretary in his or her absence. During the 1960s, under the leadership of Francis R. Valeo, staff positions under the secretary of the Senate were redefined from patronage to professional status, a trend continued by Valeo's successors.
Notable secretaries Samuel Allyne Otis, the first secretary of the Senate, had previously been speaker of the Massachusetts legislature and a member of the Continental Congress. Otis was secretary for twenty-five years. General Anson McCook of New York, a former House member and one of the "Fighting McCooks" of the Civil War, served as secretary, as well as a former Confederate general and Congressman, William R. Cox of North Carolina. In addition, two former U.S. senators, Charles Cutts of New Hampshire and Walter Lowrie of Pennsylvania, have later served as secretary. Other former House members who have held the post include Charles G. Bennett (NY). During the Ninety-ninth Congress (1985–1987), Jo-Anne Coe became the first woman to serve as secretary.
It has not been unusual for secretaries of the Senate to have devoted their entire careers to the Senate. Several began as pages, including Edwin Halsey, who served throughout the dramatic New Deal years; Leslie Biffle, a close confidant of President Harry S. Truman; Carl Loeffler and J. Mark Trice, secretaries during the Eightieth and Eighty-third congresses; and Walter J. Stewart, secretary from 1987 to 1994.
Secretaries of the Senate The following persons served as Secretary of the Senate:
Portrait Secretary of the Senate State or territory Term start Term end Congress 1 Samuel Allyne Otis Massachusetts April 8, 1789 April 22, 1814 1st – 13th –Samuel Turner Jr. ActingSeptember 19, 1814October 11, 181413th 2 Charles Cutts New Hampshire October 12, 1814 December 12, 1825 13th – 19th 3 Walter Lowrie Pennsylvania December 12, 1825 December 5, 1836 19th – 24th 4 Asbury Dickins North Carolina December 13, 1836 July 15, 1861 24th – 37th 5 John Weiss Forney Pennsylvania July 15, 1861 June 4, 1868 37th – 40th 6 George C. Gorham California June 6, 1868 March 24, 1879 40th – 46th 7 John C. Burch Tennessee March 24, 1879 July 28, 1881 46th – 47th – Francis E. Shober Acting North Carolina October 24, 1881 December 18, 1883 47th – 48th 8 Anson G. McCook New York December 18, 1883 August 7, 1893 48th – 53rd 9 William Ruffin Cox North Carolina August 7, 1893 January 31, 1900 53rd – 56th 10 Charles G. Bennett New York February 1, 1900 March 13, 1913 56th – 63rd 11 James M. Baker South Carolina March 13, 1913 May 19, 1919 63rd – 66th 12 George A. Sanderson Illinois May 19, 1919 April 24, 1925 66th – 69th 13 Edwin Pope Thayer Indiana December 7, 1925 March 9, 1933 69th – 73rd 14 Edwin A. Halsey Virginia March 9, 1933 January 29, 1945 73rd – 79th 15 Leslie Biffle Arkansas February 8, 1945 January 4, 1947 79th – 80th 16 Carl A. Loeffler Pennsylvania January 4, 1947 January 3, 1949 80th 17 Leslie Biffle Arkansas January 3, 1949 January 3, 1953 81st – 82nd 18 J. Mark Trice Maryland January 3, 1953 January 5, 1955 83rd – 84th 19 Felton M. Johnston Mississippi January 5, 1955 December 30, 1965 84th – 89th 20 Emery L. Frazier Kentucky January 1, 1966 September 30, 1966 89th 21 Francis R. Valeo Washington, D.C. October 1, 1966 March 31, 1977 89th – 95th 22 J. Stanley Kimmitt Virginia April 1, 1977 January 4, 1981 95th – 97th 23 William F. Hildenbrand Washington, D.C. January 5, 1981 January 2, 1985 97th – 98th 24 Jo–Anne L. Coe Virginia January 3, 1985 January 6, 1987 99th – 100th 25 Walter J. Stewart Washington, D.C. January 6, 1987 April 15, 1994 100th – 103rd 26 Martha S. Pope Connecticut April 15, 1994 January 3, 1995 103rd 27 Sheila P. Burke California January 4, 1995 June 7, 1995 104th 28 Kelly D. Johnston Oklahoma June 8, 1995 September 30, 1996 104th 29 Gary Lee Sisco Tennessee October 1, 1996 July 11, 2001 104th – 107th 30 Jeri Thomson Virginia July 12, 2001 January 6, 2003 107th – 108th 31 Emily J. Reynolds Tennessee January 7, 2003 January 3, 2007 108th – 109th 32 Nancy Erickson South Dakota January 4, 2007 January 5, 2015 110th – 114th 33 Julie E. Adams Iowa January 6, 2015 March 1, 2021 114th – 117th 34 Sonceria "Ann" Berry Alabama March 1, 2021 January 3, 2025 117th – 118th 35Jackie BarberSouth DakotaJanuary 3, 2025 present119th
Table notes:
See also Clerk of the Parliaments Clerk of the Senate (Canada) Clerk of the Australian Senate Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha (India)
References
External links Secretary of the Senate, officers of the U.S. Senate