# Clerk (legislature)

The clerk, chief clerk, secretary, or secretary general (British English: /klɑːrk/; American English: /klɜːrk/) 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 preside over an election of a new presiding officer. The clerk sometimes 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 procedural operations within a legislature, and usually assist the clerk of the House in fulfilling their duties. The expression clerking can be used to describe working with the procedural aspects of a legislative assembly.

## Appointment

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. Junior clerks may be appointed by the clerk of the House or by the presiding officer, and may have to be confirmed by the members.
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
### Commonwealth

| Legislature | Clerk of sole or lower house | Clerk of upper house | Notes |
| Parliament of Australia | Clerk | Clerk | |
| — Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly | Clerk | N/A | Unicameral. Federal territory of Australia. |
| — Parliament of New South Wales | Clerk | Clerk | The clerk of the Legislative Council is formally known as the clerk of the Parliaments and clerk of the Legislative Council. |
| — Northern Territory Legislative Assembly | Clerk | N/A | Unicameral. Federal territory of Australia. |
| — Parliament of Queensland | Clerk | N/A | Unicameral. |
| — Parliament of South Australia | Clerk | Clerk | |
| — Parliament of Tasmania | Clerk | Clerk | |
| — Parliament of Victoria | Clerk | Clerk | |
| — Parliament of Western Australia | Clerk | Clerk | The clerk of the Legislative Council is formally known as the clerk of the Legislative Council and clerk of the Parliaments. |
| Parliament of Canada | Clerk | Clerk | The clerk of the Senate is formally known as the clerk of the Senate and clerk of the Parliaments. |
| — 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. |
| — 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. |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | Clerk | Clerk | The clerk of the House of Lords is known as the clerk of the Parliaments, and the clerk of the House of Commons is formally the under-clerk of the Parliaments, but the latter title is seldom used. |
| — Northern Ireland Assembly | Clerk | N/A | Unicameral |
| — Scottish Parliament | Clerk | N/A | Unicameral |
| — Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament | Clerk (Clerc) | N/A | Unicameral |
| — Tynwald Court | 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. |

### Asia

| 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 |
| Congress of the Philippines | Secretary General | Secretary | |

### Europe

| Legislature | Clerk of sole or lower house | Clerk of upper house | Notes |
| National Assembly of Belarus | Director of the Secretariat | Director of the Secretariat | |
| Cortes Generales | General Secretary (Secretario General) | Senior Clerk (Letrado mayor) | The general secretary of the Congress of Deputies is also ex officio senior clerk of the whole Parliament (Letrado mayor de las Cortes Generales). Both clerks are elected by the bureaus of their respective chambers, and must be civil servants from the Parliament. The regional assemblies also have this officer with the same name of senior clerk. |

### North America

| Legislature | Clerk of sole or lower house | Clerk of upper house | Notes |
| Inatsisartut | Director | N/A | |
| 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 | |
| — 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. The Senate also has a chief clerk, who is the chief fiscal officer, and holds other miscellaneous administrative duties. |
| — 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 clerk of the House is ex-officio the keeper of the Rolls of the Legislature. |
| — Wisconsin State Legislature | Chief Clerk | Chief Clerk | |
| — Wyoming State Legislature | Chief Clerk | Chief Clerk | |

## Other officials

Other administrative and procedural officials in legislatures of English-speaking countries will often be referred to as clerks, even if their formal job title doesn’t. It is noteworthy that whilst mostly similar, certain roles may have different responsibilities between the Commonwealth and United States.
| Name | Notes |
| Clerk assistant | Sometimes used as the title for the deputy clerk of the House, such as in the UK House of Commons. |
| Committee clerk | Responsible for the administrative operations of a parliamentary committee, and advises the chair and members on procedural matters. The most senior committee clerk is sometimes known as the Clerk of Committees. |
| Journal clerk | Responsible for the upkeep of the chamber’s journal and other official records such as minutes of proceedings, however the verbatim record is usually the responsibility of a separate official. The most senior journal clerk is sometimes known as the clerk of the journals. |
| Reading clerk | In the United States they are usually responsible for the oral reading of bills, motions, amendments and other items that the chamber may order. 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, and recording daily attendance. |