Secretary of the Senate

The Secretary of the Senate is an elected 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. Today, by agreement of the two parties, the Majority Leader selects the Secretary of the Senate, and the election is merely ceremonial.

The current secretary (for the 115th United States Congress) is Julie E. Adams.

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. Every act passed by the Senate is examined and signed by the secretary. In certain parliamentary circumstances, the secretary may also preside over the Senate. The most recent occurrence was on 28 June 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.

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