Order Code 98-747 GOV
Updated August 20, 2008
Secretary of the Senate: Legislative and
Administrative Duties
Jacob R. Straus
Analyst on the Congress
Government and Finance Division
Summary
The Secretary of the Senate is an officer of the Senate elected at the beginning of
each Congress by the membership of the Senate. The Secretary has financial,
administrative, and legislative responsibilities derived from law, Senate rules, and other
sources. In addition, the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration maintains
oversight authority over the Secretary of the Senate and issues policies and regulations
governing the Secretary’s duties and responsibilities. The Secretary of the Senate was
established during the First Congress (1789-1791) when Samuel Allyne Otis was elected
on April 8, 1789.1
History of the Secretary of the Senate
The first Secretary of the Senate, Samuel Allyne Otis, was elected on April 8, 1789,
two days after the Senate first achieved a quorum.2 The Secretary of the Senate was
initially responsible for keeping the minutes and records of the Senate, transmitting
messages to the House of Representatives, and purchasing supplies.3
Today, the Secretary of the Senate’s jurisdiction has been expanded far beyond the
original duties. These additional responsibilities include supervision of the clerks,
curators, official recorders of debates, and the parliamentarian; the disbursement of
payroll; the education of the Senate pages;4 and the maintenance of public records. The
1 This report revises an earlier report by Paul E. Dwyer, who recently retired as a Specialist in
American National Government at CRS.
2 Senate debate, Annals of the Congress of the United States, vol. 1 (Apr. 6, 1789), pp. 17-18.
3 U.S. Congress, Senate Historical Office, Secretary of the Senate, [http://www.senate.gov/
artandhistory/history/common/briefing/secretary_senate.htm], accessed Aug. 12, 2008.
4 2 U.S.C. § 88b.
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Secretary serves as the chief financial officer of the Senate and is custodian of the Senate
seal.5
Origins of Duties and Responsibilities
The duties and responsibilities of the Secretary of the Senate have developed over
time through several sources. These sources include statutes, Senate rules and orders, and
custom and precedent. Statutes, rules and orders, and other materials may be found in
! the United States Code, which is the codification, by subject matter, of
the general and permanent laws of the United States;6
! the United States Statutes at Large, which is the collection of all laws
and resolutions enacted during each session of Congress;7
! the Senate Manual, which contains the texts of the (1) Standing Rules of
the Senate, (2) standing orders of the senate, (3) rules for the Regulation
of the Senate Wing of the United States Capitol, and (4) excerpts from
laws applicable to the Senate;8 and
! through custom and precedent.9
5 U.S. Congress, Secretary of the Senate, “Senate Seal” [http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/
history/common/briefing/Senate_Seal.htm], accessed Aug. 19, 2008. The Senate seal is based
on the Great Seal of the United States and is inscribed with E Pluribus Unum on a shield of
thirteen stars and thirteen vertical stripes. The seal also has olive and oak branches to symbolize
peace and strength, a red liberty cap and crossed fasces to represent freedom and authority,
emanating blue beams of light and the words “United States Senate.” The seal is placed on
impeachment documents and resolutions consenting to international treaties, resolutions
recognizing appointments, and resolutions recognizing commendation and notable achievements.
See also, “Senate Seal,” Congressional Record, vol. 17, part 1 (Mar. 21, 1885), p. 71; “Senate
Seal,” Congressional Record, vol. 17, part 1 (Mar. 31, 1885), p. 96; and U.S. Congress, Riddick’s
Senate Procedure: Precedents and Practices, 101st Cong., 2nd sess., S.Doc. 101-28 (Washington:
GPO, 1992), p. 1231.
6 The U.S. Code can be found online at the Office of the Law Revision Counsel website,
[http://uscode.house.gov/search/criteria.shtml], accessed Aug. 12, 2008.
7 The Statutes at Large is prepared and published by the Office of the Federal Register at the
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For more information see
[http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/publications/statutes.html], accessed Aug. 12, 2008.
8 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, Senate Manual — Containing
the Standing Rules, Orders, Laws, and Resolutions Affecting the Business of the United States
Senate, S.Doc. 107-1, 107th Cong., 1st sess. (Washington: GPO, 2002). The Senate Manual has
not been published since the 107th Congress. The Standing Rules of the Senate were most recently
published on September 14, 2007, and can be found on the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration website [http://rules.senate.gov/senaterules], visited Aug. 12, 2008.
9 For example of some of the precedents of the Senate see, U.S. Congress, Riddick’s Senate
Procedure: Precedents and Practices, 101st Cong., 2nd sess., S.Doc. 101-28 (Washington: GPO,
1992).
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Many of the duties of the Secretary of the Senate are defined by the Senate
Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
As a consequence of its jurisdiction over Senate administrative matters, the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration oversees operations of the Secretary of the
Senate.
Areas of Responsibility
The Secretary of the Senate’s duties and responsibilities can be divided into three
broad categories: financial, administrative, and legislative.10
Financial Responsibilities. The Secretary is the chief financial officer of the
Senate. As such, the Secretary is responsible for funds appropriated to the Senate and for
managing and supervising the disbursing office, which among its financial duties handles
the Senate payroll and related personnel matters. The Secretary also conducts audits of
Senate financial activities. Details on expenditures of funds appropriated to the Senate are
published semi-annually by the Secretary in the Senate document, Report of the Secretary
of the Senate.11
Administrative Responsibilities. The Secretary of the Senate is responsible
for a number of services within the Senate. These responsibilities include
! the Senate Stationery Room;
! the Senate Library;
! the Conservation and Preservation Office;
! the Office of Public Records;12
! the Senate Historical Office;13
! the Office of Senate Curator;
! the Office of Senate Security;
! the Office of Interparliamentary Services;14
! the Office of Printing and Document Services;
! the Disbursing Office;
10 U.S. Congress, Senate Historical Office, “April 8, 1789: Help Wanted — The Senate Elects
a Secretary” [http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Help_Wanted_-_The_Senate_
Elects_A_Secretary.htm], accessed Aug. 12, 2008.
11 2 U.S.C. § 104a.
12 The Office of Public Records processes and maintains records filed with the Secretary,
including records relating to campaign expenses, lobbying disclosure, financial disclosure, the
Code of Conduct, gifts, mass mailings, political fund designees, Senate services, and foreign
travel reimbursement reports. For more information on the Office of Public Records, see
[http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/g_three_sections_with_teasers/legislative_
home.htm], accessed Aug. 12, 2008.
13 For more information on the Senate Historical Office, see U.S. Congress, Senate Historical
O f f i c e [ h t t p : / / w w w . s e n a t e . g o v / a r t a n d h i s t o r y / h i s t o r y / c o m m o n / g e n e r i c /
Senate_Historical_Office.htm], accessed Aug. 19, 2008.
14 The Office of Interparliamentary Services represents the Senate to foreign parliamentary
delegations and assists Senators with international travel.
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! the Senate Page Program;15 and
! the Senate Gift Shop (including Gift Shop Revolving Fund).
Other duties of the Secretary of the Senate include maintenance of the Senate public
website; supervision of Senate staff displaced by the death or resignation of a Senator; and
supervision of the Senate legal counsel.
Legislative Responsibilities. The Secretary of the Senate manages functions
that support the legislative process in the Senate, such as signing legislation after Senate
passage.16 The Secretary also supervises the following staff (listed with their roll in the
Senate legislative process):
! Bill Clerk (records the Senate’s official activities and status of
legislation);
! Enrolling Clerk (prepares Senate-passed legislation before it is sent to the
President);
! Executive Clerk (records Senate actions during executive sessions,
produces the Executive Calendar, and processes nominations and treaty
resolutions received from the President);
! Journal Clerk (records the Senate’s daily legislative proceedings and
prepares a history of legislation for the Senate Journal);
! Legislative Clerk (reads aloud bills and amendments, the Senate Journal,
messages to the Senate; calls the roll and prepares the daily Calendar of
Business);
! Official Reporters of Debates (prepare verbatim reports of Senate floor
proceedings for the Congressional Record); and
! Parliamentarian (advises Senators and staff on Senate precedents and
rules, precedents, and statutes related to Senate proceedings).
In addition, the Secretary of the Senate manages the following offices:
15 For more information on the Senate page program see CRS Report 98-758, Pages of the United
States Congress: Selection, Duties, and Program Administration, by Mildred Amer; and CRS
Report RL33685, Pages of the United States Congress: History, Background Information, and
Proposals for Change, by Mildred Amer.
16 On January 3, 1947, the Secretary presided over the opening activities of the Senate, a job
normally handled by the vice president or, in his absence, the president pro tempore of the
Senate. In this case, Secretary of the Senate Leslie L. Biffle presided as a result of Harry Truman
becoming president following President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s death in 1945. See
Congressional Record, vol. 93, part 1 (Jan. 3, 1947), p. 3.
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! Daily Digest (preparing the resume of each day’s activities of the Senate
for the Congressional Record, including committee hearings and
meetings, and floor actions);
! Captioning Services Office (provides captions of Senate proceedings for
the hearing-impaired);
! Continuity of Operations Program (supports the Senate’s ability to
conduct business and access data at an offsite location, in conjunction
with the Senate Sergeant at Arms).
See [http://www.senate.gov/reference/office/secretary_of_senate.htm] for further
information on the history, structure, and operation of the Secretary of the Senate’s office.
Table 1. Secretary of the Senate
Congress (in
which service
Secretary of the Senate
Term Began
Term Concluded
began)
1st (1789-1791)
Samuel Allyne Otis
April 8, 1789
April 22, 1814 a
13th (1813-1815)
Charles Cutts
October 12, 1814
December 12, 1825
19th (1825-1827)
Walter Lowrie
December 12, 1825
December 5, 1836
24th (1835-1837)
Asbury Dickins
December 13, 1836
July 15, 1861
37th (1861-1863)
John W. Forney
July 15, 1861
June 4, 1868
40th (1867-1869)
George C. Gorham
June 6, 1868
March 24, 1879
46th (1979-1881)
John C. Burch
March 24, 1879
July 28, 1881b
48th (1883-1885)
Anson G. McCook
December 18, 1883
August 7, 1893
53rd (1893-1895)
William Ruffin Cox
August 7, 1893
January 31, 1099
56th (1899-1901)
Charles G. Bennett
February 1, 1900
March 13, 1913
63rd (1913-1915)
James M. Baker
March 13, 1913
May 19, 1919
66th (1919-1921)
George A. Sanderson
May 19, 1919
April 24, 1925
69th (1925-1927)
Edwin Pope Thayer
December 7, 1925
March 9, 1933
73rd (1933-1935)
Edwin A. Halsey
March 9, 1933
January 29, 1945
79th (1945-1947)
Leslie Biffle
February 8, 1945
January 4, 1947 c
80th (1947-1949)
Carl A. Loeffler
January 4, 1947
January 3, 1949
81st (1949-1951)
Leslie Biffle
January 3, 1949
January 3, 1953
83rd (1953-1955)
J. Mark Trice
January 3, 1953
January 5, 1955
84th (1955-1957)
Felton M. Johnston
January 5, 1955
December 30, 1965
89th (1965-1967)
Emery L. Frazier
January 1, 1966
September 30, 1966 d
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Congress (in
which service
Secretary of the Senate
Term Began
Term Concluded
began)
Francis R. Valeo
October 1, 1966
March 31, 1977
95th (1977-1979)
J. Stanley Kimmitt
April 1, 1977
January 4, 1981
97th (1981-1983)
William F. Hildenbrand
January 5, 1981
January 2, 1985
99th (1985-1987)
Jo-Anne L. Coe
January 3, 1985
January 6, 1987 e
100th (1987-1995)
Walter J. Stewart
January 6, 1987
April 15, 1994
103rd (1993-1995)
Martha S. Pope
April 15, 1994
January 3, 1995
104th (1995-1997)
Sheila P. Burke
January 4, 1995
June 7, 1995
Kelly D. Johnston
June 8, 1995
September 30, 1996
Gary Lee Sisco
October 1, 1996
July 11, 2001
107th (2001-2003)
Jeri Thomson
July 12, 2001
January 6, 2003
108th (2003-2005)
Emily J. Reynolds
January 7, 2003
January 4, 2007
110th (2007-2009)
Nancy Erickson
January 4, 2007
Present
Source: Senate Historical Office [http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/
secretary_senate.htm], accessed Aug. 19, 2008.
Notes:
a Samuel Otis died in office four days after the end of the second session of the 13th Congress. When the
third session convened on September 19, 1814, Chief Clerk Samuel Turner, Jr., was sworn in as
acting secretary. Turner served until Charles Cutts took office the following month.
b Francis E. Shober was elected Acting Secretary on October 25, 1881 and served until December 18, 1883.
Shober continued to serve as a result of an equally divided Senate that could not choose a permanent
secretary.
c Leslie Biffle also served as Acting Secretary between January 29 and February 8, 1945, following Edwin
Halsey’s death.
d Frazier was elected on August 20, 1965 by S.Res. 140 which specified that his term begin on January 1,
1966 and terminate on September 30, 1966. Frazier was sworn in on October 22, 1965 and began his
service on January 1, 1966.17
e Jo-Anne Coe was the first woman to serve as Secretary of the Senate.
17 Senate Journal, Volume 174, page 955(89th Congress, 1st session).