Pages of the United States Congress: History, Legislation in the 112th Congress, and Program Administration

R. Eric Petersen
Specialist in American National Government

For more than 180 years, messengers known as pages have served the United States Congress. Pages must be high school juniors and at least 16 years of age. Several incumbent and former Members of Congress as well as other prominent Americans have served as congressional pages.

Senator Daniel Webster appointed the first Senate page in 1829. The first House pages began their service in 1842. Women were first appointed as pages in 1971.

In August 2011, House leaders announced the termination of that chamber’s page program. On September 13, 2011, Representative Dan Boren introduced H.Res. 397, entitled Reestablishing the House of Representatives Page Program. The measure was referred to the Committee on House Administration.

Senate pages are appointed and sponsored by Senators for one academic semester of the school year, or for a summer session. The right to appoint pages rotates among Senators pursuant to criteria set by the Senate’s leadership. Academic standing is one of the most important criteria used in the final selection of pages. Selection criteria for House pages was similar when the page program operated in that chamber.

Prospective Senate pages are advised to contact their Senators to request consideration for a page appointment.


Date of Report: September 15, 2011
Number of Pages: 7
Order Number: 98-758
Price: $19.95

Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports

Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.