Also known as: Head of Department · Heads of Department · head of a department · department heads
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The principal officers who head the executive departments of the United States government. The Appointments Clause permits Congress to authorize these officers to appoint inferior officers of the United States.
The Secretary of Commerce issues an order naming an agency attorney as a hearing examiner with authority to conduct administrative proceedings. The examiner's duties remain subject to the Secretary's ongoing supervision and review. The appointment is valid because the Secretary qualifies as a head of department under the constitutional provision allowing such appointments for inferior officers.
Congress enacts a statute directing the Speaker of the House and President pro tempore of the Senate to appoint members of a new election commission. The commission members exercise executive enforcement powers. The appointments fail because legislative officers do not qualify as heads of departments authorized to appoint inferior officers.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Congress creates an agency led by a single director removable only for cause and grants the director power to appoint subordinate enforcement officers. The structure raises constitutional concerns because the director functions as a principal officer rather than a head of department who may receive appointment authority for inferior officers.
A statute vests a department head with authority to appoint and remove certain staff attorneys. The head exercises that removal power to dismiss an attorney who testified against administration policy. The removal stands because Congress may limit or expand the removal authority of heads of departments when vesting them with appointment power over inferior officers.
A judicial council appoints a special investigator to examine only one employee's handling of specific files and to issue recommendations. The investigator's duties are narrow and subject to judicial oversight. The appointment is permissible because courts may appoint such inferior officers when Congress has vested that authority.
During a Senate recess the President issues a commission filling a vacancy in a department head position. The commission expires at the end of the next Senate session. The appointment is valid because the Constitution authorizes the President to fill vacancies in offices that heads of departments would otherwise oversee.
Heads of departments are the principal officers who lead the executive departments. The Constitution does not define the term but indicates that these officers must have some connection to the executive branch. Congress may authorize them to appoint inferior officers.
Supporting sources
No. The Appointments Clause permits heads of departments to appoint only inferior officers. Principal officers must be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
Supporting sources
Yes. A head of department must be an executive branch officer or have some connection to that branch. Legislative officers such as the Speaker of the House do not qualify.
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Yes. The Appointments Clause expressly allows Congress to vest appointment of inferior officers in the courts of law. Such appointments are valid when the officer's duties are limited and subject to supervision.
Supporting sources
…vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments." Appellants' argument is that this provision is the exclusive method by which those charged with executing the laws of the United States may be chosen. Congress, they assert, cannot have…