I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5527 
To establish the Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship Program. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 17, 2018 
Mr. STIVERS (for himself and Ms. LOFGREN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on House Administration 
A BILL 
To establish the Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship 
Program. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Daniel Webster Con-
gressional Clerkship Act of 2018’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Each year, many of the most talented law 
school graduates in the United States begin their 
legal careers as judicial law clerks. 
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(2) The judicial clerkship program has given 
the judiciary access to a pool of exceptional young 
lawyers at a relatively low cost. 
(3) These same lawyers then go on to become 
leaders of their profession, where they serve a crit-
ical role in helping to educate the public about the 
judiciary and the judicial process. 
(4) The White House, the administrative agen-
cies of the executive branch, the Administrative Of-
fice of the United States Courts, the Federal Judi-
cial Center, and the United States Sentencing Com-
mission all operate analogous programs for talented 
young professionals at the outset of their careers. 
(5) Congress is without a similar program. 
(6) At a time when our Nation faces consider-
able challenges, Congress and the public would ben-
efit immeasurably from a program, modeled after 
the judicial clerkship program, that engages the 
brightest young lawyers in the Nation in the legisla-
tive process. 
(7) Accordingly, the Congress herein creates the 
Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship Program, 
named after one of the most admired and distin-
guished lawyer-legislators ever to serve in Congress, 
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to improve the business of Congress and increase the 
understanding of its work by the public. 
SEC. 3. DANIEL WEBSTER CONGRESSIONAL CLERKSHIP 
PROGRAM. 
(a) SELECTION COMMITTEES.—In this Act, the term 
‘‘Selection Committees’’ means— 
(1) the Committee on Rules and Administration 
of the Senate; and 
(2) the Committee on House Administration of 
the House of Representatives. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is estab-
lished the Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship Pro-
gram for the appointment of individuals who are grad-
uates of accredited law schools to serve as Congressional 
Clerks in the Senate or House of Representatives. 
(c) SELECTION OF CLERKS.—The Selection Commit-
tees shall select Congressional Clerks in the following 
manner: 
(1) The Committee on Rules and Administra-
tion of the Senate shall select not less than 6 Con-
gressional Clerks each year for a clerkship with an 
office of the Senate for a 1-year period. 
(2) The Committee on House Administration of 
the House of Representatives shall select not less 
than 6 Congressional Clerks each year for a clerk-
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ship with an office of the House of Representatives 
for a 1-year period. 
(d) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In carrying out sub-
section (c), the Selection Committees shall select Congres-
sional Clerks consistent with the following criteria: 
(1) Each Congressional Clerk selected shall be 
a graduate of an accredited law school as of the 
starting date of his or her clerkship. 
(2) Each Congressional Clerk selected shall pos-
sess— 
(A) an excellent academic record; 
(B) a strong record of achievement in ex-
tracurricular activities; 
(C) a demonstrated commitment to public 
service; and 
(D) outstanding analytic, writing, and oral 
communication skills. 
(e) PROCESS.—After a Congressional Clerk is se-
lected under this section, such Congressional Clerk may 
then interview for a clerkship in an office, and accept the 
clerkship if offered, as follows: 
(1) For a Congressional Clerk selected under 
subsection (c)(1), the Congressional Clerk may inter-
view for, and accept if offered, a clerkship with— 
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(A) an office of any committee of the Sen-
ate, including a select or special committee; 
(B) an office of a joint committee of Con-
gress the pay of the employees of which is dis-
bursed by the Secretary of the Senate; 
(C) an office of any individual member of 
the Senate; 
(D) a leadership office of the Senate; or 
(E) the Office of the Parliamentarian of 
the Senate, the Office of Senate Legal Counsel, 
or the Office of the Legislative Counsel of the 
Senate. 
(2) For a Congressional Clerk selected under 
subsection (c)(2), the Congressional Clerk may inter-
view for, and accept if offered, a clerkship with— 
(A) an office of any committee of the 
House of Representatives, including any select 
or special committee; 
(B) an office of a joint committee of Con-
gress the pay of the employees of which is dis-
bursed by the Chief Administrative Officer of 
the House of Representatives; 
(C) an office of any individual Member of 
the House of Representatives; 
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(h) FUNDING
FOR
POSITIONS; ADHERENCE
TO 
RULES.— 
(1) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of 
the Senate that— 
(A) the amount of financial assistance pro-
vided to a Congressional Clerk under paragraph 
(3) should, if practicable, be comparable to the 
compensation and benefits provided for similar 
clerkships offered through the Federal judiciary 
and executive branches; and 
(B) any financial assistance provided to a 
Congressional Clerk under such paragraph 
should not result in a net increase in the 
amounts appropriated for the legislative branch 
for any fiscal year. 
(2) DETERMINATION.—The amount of any fi-
nancial assistance provided under paragraph (3) for 
a Congressional Clerk shall be— 
(A) determined or approved by the office 
hiring the Congressional Clerk; and 
(B) based on the office’s determination of 
the duties and responsibilities for such Congres-
sional Clerk. 
(3) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 
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(A) ELIGIBILITY
FOR
FELLOWSHIPS.—A 
Congressional Clerk that is placed with an of-
fice described in subsection (e) may accept a 
fellowship through an institution of higher edu-
cation (as defined in section 101(a) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1001(a))) for the term of the clerkship with the 
approval of the office in accordance with para-
graph (2). 
(B) PAYMENT
PROVIDED
BY
CONGRES-
SIONAL OFFICE.—An office described in sub-
section (e) may use amounts otherwise available 
to the office to provide compensation to a Con-
gressional Clerk of the office for the term of the 
clerkship. 
(4) REQUIRED
ADHERENCE
TO
RULES.—A 
Congressional Clerk that obtains a clerkship under 
this section shall be subject to all laws, regulations, 
and rules in the same manner and to the same ex-
tent as an individual serving in a similar position in 
the Senate or the House of Representatives, as the 
case may be. 
(i) RULES.—The Selection Committees shall develop 
and promulgate rules regarding the administration of the 
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Congressional Clerkship program established under this 
section. 
Æ 
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