PRIA Logo™
Title 5 — Government Organization and EmployeesRelease 119-73not60

§5503 Recess Appointments

Title 5 › Part III— EMPLOYEES › Subpart D— Pay and Allowances › Chapter 55— PAY ADMINISTRATION › Subchapter I— GENERAL PROVISIONS › § 5503

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

The government cannot pay someone who was given a recess appointment to a job that needs Senate confirmation if the vacancy began while the Senate was in session, until the Senate confirms that person. Exceptions apply if the vacancy began within 30 days before the session ended, if a different nomination was pending at the end, or if a nomination was rejected within 30 days before the end and someone else then got a recess appointment. If an exception applies, a nomination must be sent to the Senate within 40 days after the next session begins.

Full Legal Text

Title 5, §5503

Government Organization and Employees — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Payment for services may not be made from the Treasury of the United States to an individual appointed during a recess of the Senate to fill a vacancy in an existing office, if the vacancy existed while the Senate was in session and was by law required to be filled by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, until the appointee has been confirmed by the Senate. This subsection does not apply—
(1)if the vacancy arose within 30 days before the end of the session of the Senate;
(2)if, at the end of the session, a nomination for the office, other than the nomination of an individual appointed during the preceding recess of the Senate, was pending before the Senate for its advice and consent; or
(3)if a nomination for the office was rejected by the Senate within 30 days before the end of the session and an individual other than the one whose nomination was rejected thereafter receives a recess appointment.
(b)A nomination to fill a vacancy referred to by paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a) of this section shall be submitted to the Senate not later than 40 days after the beginning of the next session of the Senate.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

DerivationU.S. CodeRevised Statutes andStatutes at Large 5 U.S.C. 56.R.S. § 1761.July 11, 1940, ch. 580, 54 Stat. 751. Standard changes are made to conform with the definitions applicable and the style of this title as outlined in the preface to the report.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

5 U.S.C. § 5503

Title 5 — Government Organization and Employees

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60