§2702 Membership; Chairman; Meetings

Summary

Creates an eleven-member committee and explains who sits on it, how they are chosen, and how it runs. Five members are the Secretary of the Senate, the Clerk of the House, the Archivist of the United States, the Senate Historian, and the House Historian. Six more are appointed, one each by the Speaker of the House, the House Minority Leader, the Senate Majority Leader, the Senate Minority Leader, the Secretary of the Senate, and the Clerk of the House. Each appointed member must know about U.S. history, archives, publishing, library science, or using legislative records. The five office-holders serve only while they hold those jobs. Appointed members serve two-year terms, may be reappointed without limit, and their first terms start January 1, 1991. Vacancies do not stop the committee and are filled the same way as the original appointment. The Secretary of the Senate must be chair for the two-year period starting January 1, 1991, and the Clerk of the House must be chair for the two-year period starting January 1, 1993; after that they alternate as chair every two years. The committee must meet no later than 30 days after the first session of the 102d Congress begins, then at least twice a year or whenever a majority calls a meeting. Seven members make a quorum, but fewer members can still hold hearings.