Clerk (legislature)

The clerk, chief clerk, secretary, or secretary general of a legislative chamber is the senior administrative officer responsible for ensuring that its business runs smoothly. This may encompass keeping custody of documents lain before the house, received, or produced; making records of proceedings; allocating office space; enrolling of members, and administering an oath of office. During the first sitting of a newly elected legislature, or when the current presiding officer steps down, they may act as the presiding officer in the election of a new presiding officer such as the speaker or president. The clerk in some cases has a ceremonial role. A clerk may also advise the speaker or members on parliamentary procedure, acting in American parlance as a "parliamentarian".

In the English speaking world, a parliamentary, legislative or congressional clerk is often used to refer to other officials who are involved with administrative operations within a legislature.

Appointment[edit]

In the Westminster system, the clerk is usually an apolitical civil servant, and typically attains the position through promotion and retains it until retirement. In the UK the Clerks of both houses are appointed by letters patent from the Sovereign.

In the United States, while clerks are usually nonpartisan, they are often elected by the assembly members at the beginning of each term. At the federal level, and typically at state level, the lower house has a "(chief) clerk" while the upper house has a "secretary".

Clerks of the House by legislature[edit]

Commonwealth[edit]

Legislature	Clerk of sole or lower house	Clerk of upper house	Notes
Parliament of Australia	Clerk	Clerk
Parliament of Canada	Clerk	Clerk
— Legislative Assembly of Alberta	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of British Columbia	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of Manitoba	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Nova Scotia House of Assembly	Chief Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Nunavut Legislative Assembly	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of Ontario	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— National Assembly of Quebec	Secretary General	N/A	Unicameral. The post of Secretary General was formerly called Greffier in French.^[1]
— Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Yukon Legislative Assembly	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
Parliament of India	Secretary General	Secretary General
Parliament of New Zealand	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral. The Clerk of the upper house was called the Clerk of the Parliaments prior to abolition.^[2]
Parliament of the United Kingdom	Clerk	Clerk
— Senedd (Wales)	Chief Executive and Clerk	N/A	Unicameral
— Tynwald (Isle of Man)	Secretary	Clerk	Bicameral, however when the Houses are sitting together they become the Tynwald Court. The Clerk of Tynwald is ex-officio the Secretary of the House of Keys and the chief administrative officer for the entire Court.^[3]

North America[edit]

Legislature	Clerk of sole or lower house	Clerk of upper house	Notes
Inatsisartut	Director	N/A	^[4]
Congress of the Union	Secretary General	Secretary General
United States Congress	Clerk	Secretary	Elected every two years.
—Alabama Legislature	Clerk	Secretary	The deputy to the Clerk of the House is called the Chief Clerk.
— Alaska Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Arizona State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Arkansas General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary	The Chief Clerk is appointed by the Speaker and confirmed by the House by simple majority.
— California State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary	Elected every two years.
— Colorado General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Connecticut General Assembly	Clerk	Clerk
— Delaware General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Council of the District of Columbia	Secretary	N/A	Federal District. Unicameral.
— Florida Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— Georgia General Assembly	Clerk	Secretary
— Hawaii Legislature	Chief Clerk	Clerk
— Idaho Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Illinois General Assembly	Clerk	Secretary
— Iowa General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Kansas Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary	^{[citation needed]}
— Kentucky General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Chief Clerk
— Louisiana Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— Maine Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— Maryland General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Massachusetts General Court	Clerk	Clerk
— Michigan Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— Minnesota Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Mississippi Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— Missouri General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Montana Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Nebraska Legislature	Clerk	N/A	Unicameral. The current sole house was the Senate before the House of Representatives was abolished in 1936.
— Nevada Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— New Hampshire General Court	Clerk	Clerk
— New Jersey Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— New Mexico Legislature	Chief Clerk	Chief Clerk
— New York Legislature	Clerk	Secretary
— North Carolina General Assembly	Clerk	Clerk
— North Dakota Legislative Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Ohio General Assembly	Clerk	Clerk
— Oklahoma Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Oregon Legislative Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Pennsylvania General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Secretary-Parliamentarian	The Secretary-Parliamentarian acts as both the chief administrative officer and parliamentarian of the Senate.^[5] The Senate also has a Chief Clerk, who is the chief fiscal officer, and holds other miscellaneous administrative duties.^[6]
— Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico	Clerk	Secretary	Unincorporated territory of the United States.
— Rhode Island General Assembly	Clerk	Secretary
— South Carolina General Assembly	Clerk	Clerk
— South Dakota Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Tennessee General Assembly	Chief Clerk	Chief Clerk
— Texas Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Utah State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— Vermont General Assembly	Clerk	Secretary
— Virginia General Assembly	Clerk	Clerk
— Washington State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Secretary
— West Virginia Legislature	Clerk	Clerk	The House Clerk is ex-officio the Keeper of the Rolls of the Legislature.^[7]
— Wisconsin State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Chief Clerk
— Wyoming State Legislature	Chief Clerk	Chief Clerk

Europe[edit]

Legislature	Clerk of sole or lower house	Clerk of upper house	Notes
National Assembly of Belarus	Director of the Secretariat	Director of the Secretariat

Asia[edit]

Legislature	Clerk of sole or lower house	Clerk of upper house	Notes
National People's Congress	Secretary General	N/A	Unicameral, however the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress is a permanent body of the Congress which often acts as the national legislature.
— Legislative Council of Hong Kong	Secretary General	N/A	Unicameral
— Legislative Assembly of Macau	Secretary General	N/A	Unicameral
Knesset	Secretary	N/A	Unicameral

Other officials[edit]

This is a non-exhaustive list of some types of clerks.

Name	Notes
Calendar clerk	Responsible for the planning and upkeep of the legislative calendar.
Clerk assistant	Sometimes used as the title for the deputy of the Clerk of the House. The Second clerk assistant is sometimes the title used for their deputy.
Committee clerk	Responsible for the administrative operations of a parliamentary committee. The most senior committee clerk is sometimes known as the Clerk of Committees.
Journal clerk	Responsible for the upkeep of the house's journal. The most senior journal clerk is sometimes known as the Clerk of the Journals.
Reading clerk	Usually responsible for the oral reading of bills, motions and amendments in the United States. The Reading Clerk in the House of Lords is responsible for reading letters patents and writs of summons of newly created peers, as well as commissions granting Royal Assent, as well as recording daily attendance.^[8]

References[edit]

^ "Secrétaire général". Assemblee Nationale du Quebec. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
^ "Parliament's People". New Zealand History. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
^ "Roles of Members & Officers". Tynwald. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
^ "Bureau for Inatsisartut Organisationsdiagram" (PDF). Inatsisartut. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
^ Rules of the Senate of Pennsylvania (2023-2024). Rule 6 Duties of the Secretary-Parliamentarian. 3 January 2023.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Rules of the Senate of Pennsylvania (2023-2024). Rule 7 Duties of the Chief Clerk of the Senate. 3 January 2023.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Joint Rules of the Senate and House of Delegates. Rule 18 Record of Enrolled Bills.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^ Erskine May’s treatise on the law, privileges, proceedings and usage of Parliament (25th ed.). Part 1, Paragraph 6.33. 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2024.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links[edit]

American Society of Legislative Clerks & Secretaries (ASLCS) National Conference of State Legislatures
Society of Clerks-at-the-Table in Commonwealth Parliaments
The UK Parliamentary Archives holds the records of the Society of Clerks-at-the-Table

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[1] "Secrétaire général". Assemblee Nationale du Quebec. Retrieved 12 March 2024.

[2] "Parliament's People". New Zealand History. Retrieved 3 October 2023.

[3] "Roles of Members & Officers". Tynwald. Retrieved 3 October 2023.

[4] "Bureau for Inatsisartut Organisationsdiagram" (PDF). Inatsisartut. Retrieved 3 October 2023.

[5] Rules of the Senate of Pennsylvania (2023-2024). Rule 6 Duties of the Secretary-Parliamentarian. 3 January 2023.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[6] Rules of the Senate of Pennsylvania (2023-2024). Rule 7 Duties of the Chief Clerk of the Senate. 3 January 2023.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[7] Joint Rules of the Senate and House of Delegates. Rule 18 Record of Enrolled Bills.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)

[8] Erskine May’s treatise on the law, privileges, proceedings and usage of Parliament (25th ed.). Part 1, Paragraph 6.33. 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2024.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

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