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Appointment confirmation process
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All presidential appointments requiring Senate confirmation (PAS) must follow the appointment confirmation process before taking office. Although the number of PAS positions varies by administration, it typically includes all executive department secretaries, undersecretaries, and inspectors general. Some roles in independent agencies and commissions also require confirmation.[1] Recent administrations have included approximately 1,200 PAS positions.[2][3][4] The full list of positions for each administration can be found in the corresponding United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, commonly referred to as the Plum Book.[5]
- Confirmation process overview for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2016-2017
- Confirmation process for Joe Biden's Cabinet nominees
- Confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2025
Confirmation process
Nomination
- See also: Advice and Consent
Before any nominations are made, the White House Office of Presidential Personnel vets a list of candidates, including suggestions provided by members of Congress and special interest groups.[6] A chosen nominee then must pass through a series of investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, the Office of Government Ethics and an ethics official from the agency to which the position is assigned.[6] The nominee must also fill out the Public Financial Disclosure Report and questionnaires related to his or her background check.
The process begins when the president provides a written nomination to the Senate, where it is read on the floor and assigned a number.[1] This starts the Senate's procedure of "Advice and Consent" laid out in Article II of the U.S. Constitution for the appointment of high ranking officials by the president.[1]
Committee hearings
The nomination is passed to the Senate committee with jurisdiction over the appointed position. Some PAS positions require a joint hearing of two or more committees.[1] Committee hearings allow a close examination of the nominee, looking for partisanship and views on public policy. They can also summon supporters and opponents to testify. Committees are permitted to conduct their own investigations into the nominees, as they are not always provided with the information gathered by the White House's investigation.[1][6] Once committee hearings are closed, most committees have a set amount of time before a vote is taken on whether the nominee is reported to the Senate favorably, unfavorably or without recommendation.[1] They also have the option not to take action on the nominee. If action is taken, the committee notifies the executive clerk. The nomination is then given a number and added to the Executive Calendar of the Senate.[1]
Only one cabinet position since 1945 has been confirmed by the Senate after being reported as unfavorable by a committee. Henry A. Wallace was confirmed by the Senate by a vote of 56-32 to become the secretary of commerce on March 1, 1945.[7][8]
Committee jurisdictions
The following table outlines jurisdiction of the Senate committees in terms of the presidential appointment confirmation process. The left column indicates the Senate committee, and the right indicates the federal departments and administrations over which the committee has jurisdiction. For more information on each committee, follow the link in the left column.
| Jurisdictions of Senate committees in presidential appointment confirmation | |
|---|---|
| U.S. Senate committee | Jurisdiction[9] |
| Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry | U.S. Department of Agriculture |
| Armed Services | U.S. Department of Defense |
| Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Securities and Exchange Commission Heads of Federal Banking institutions (e.g., FDIC) |
| Budget | All issues concerning the Budget (e.g., tax revenues, government expenditures) |
| Commerce, Science, and Transportation | U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Trade Commission U.S. Department of Commerce U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Under Secretary for Science and Technology Federal Communications Commission |
| Energy and Natural Resources | U.S. Department of Energy U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| Environment and Public Works | Oversight in any issue concerning the environment, public works, or federal buildings |
| Finance | U.S. Department of the Treasury Social Security Administration International Trade Commission |
| Foreign Relations | U.S. Department of State International Monetary Fund U.S. Agency for International Development Peace Corps |
| Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services U.S. Department of Education U.S. Department of Labor U.S. Food and Drug Administration |
| Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs | U.S. Department of Homeland Security U.S. General Services Administration National Archives and Records Administration Circuit and Appeals Courts of District of Columbia United States Postal Service Inspectors General of all departments |
| Judiciary | Supreme Court Circuit Courts District Courts U.S. Department of Justice |
| Rules and Administration | Rules of the Senate General administration of congressional buildings Smithsonian Institution Botanic Gardens |
| Small Business and Entrepreneurship | Small Business Administration |
| Veterans' Affairs | U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs U.S. Department of Labor's Assistant Secretary for the Veterans Employment and Training |
| Intelligence (Select) | Central Intelligence Agency U.S. Department of Treasury's Assistant Secretary for Intelligence Analysis U.S. Department of Justice's Attorney General for National Security Director of National Intelligence |
Senate hearings
The nomination must be on the Executive Calendar for more than one day before it can make it to the Senate floor for consideration.[1] Unanimous consent of the time and date for debate must be agreed upon by all senators.[6] If even one senator does not agree, a hold is placed on the nomination.[6]
Once the nomination is considered by the Senate, unlimited debate is allowed until a majority of the Senate votes to invoke cloture and close debate. Following a vote of cloture, the Senate conducts a simple majority vote on whether to confirm, reject, or take no action on the nomination.[10] If a nomination is left pending at the end of a Congress, it must be sent back to the president who can then re-submit the nomination to the new Congress.[1] The same procedure holds true with any nominee not considered before the Senate enters a recess of more than 30 days, unless there is unanimous consent to bypass the procedure.[6]
A Senate precedent change enacted in 2025 allows the Senate to use a simple majority vote to move a bloc of certain types of executive nominations through this phase of the confirmation process. This rule does not apply to judicial or Cabinet-level positions.[11]
Presidential notification
Finally, the Senate's action on the nomination is sent to the president. All results are recorded in the Congressional Record.[1]
See also
- Advice and Consent
- Recess appointment
- Confirmation process overview for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2016-2017
- Confirmation process for Joe Biden's Cabinet nominees
- Confirmation process for Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, 2025
External links
- United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (Plum Book) 2024
- United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (Plum Book) 2020
- United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (Plum Book) 2016
- United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (Plum Book) 2012
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 CRS Report for Congress, "Senate Confirmation Process: An Overview," accessed July 24, 2013
- ↑ U.S. Government Publishing Office, "Plum Book 2012," accessed March 30, 2021
- ↑ U.S. Government Publishing Office, "Plum Book 2016," accessed March 30, 2021
- ↑ 2Washington Post, "Does the Senate really need to confirm 1,200 executive branch jobs?" accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ Government Printing Office, "United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (Plum Book) 2012," accessed July 23, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Congressional Research Service, "Presidential Appointments, the Senate's Confirmation Process, and Proposals for Change," accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ Google Books, "Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789-1992, Volume 4," accessed August 22, 2013 (Note: page 687)
- ↑ CQ Almanac, "Separation of Lending Agencies from Department of Commerce; Confirmation of Henry Wallace as Secretary of Commerce," accessed October 7, 2015
- ↑ OpenCongress, "U.S. Senate Confirmation Process," accessed January 17, 2015
- ↑ Congressional Research Service, "Senate Consideration of Presidential Nominations: Committee and Floor Procedure," April 4, 2019
- ↑ The New York Times, "Breaking Precedent, G.O.P. Changes Rules on Nominees," September 12, 2025
