House Clerk’s Office

Clerk of the Virginia House of Delegates and Keeper of the Rolls of the Commonwealth

G. Paul Nardo is the 23rd Clerk of the Virginia House of Delegates and Keeper of the Rolls of the Commonwealth. First elected by the 100 Delegates in 2011, he has served as the body’s Chief Administrative Officer for over a decade. The position of Clerk of the House dates to the founding of the first, permanent, representative English-speaking law-making body in the Western Hemisphere at Jamestown in 1619.  Over four hundred years later, the Clerk remains responsible for ensuring that all constitutional, statutory, and policy requirements are followed when the House of Delegates conducts the people’s business, in addition to having many other duties and responsibilities.

As the administrative arm of the House of Delegates, the Clerk and the non-partisan professionals he supervises, serve members when the legislature is in and out of session. The Clerk oversees the day to day operations of the House and is responsible for developing and managing a $25 million annual budget. He also maintains official records of all legislative business. These records include: the Journal of the proceedings of the House of Delegates, the Acts of Assembly (which are the laws of the Commonwealth), legislative indexes and bill status information, and committee membership lists as well as public hearing and legislative meeting schedules. Further, the House Clerk’s Office receives reports of standing committees; coordinates the printing and distribution of bills, resolutions and amendments; prepares all legislation passed by the General Assembly for review and action by the Governor; and produces a wide variety of legislative resources, including House Calendars, a website, and educational publications and programs; and processes requests for and authorizes the use of legislative space in the Capitol and General Asembly Building. In addition, the House Clerk’s Office coordinates the scheduling of standing committee and interim study meetings and provides public notice of meetings schedules throughout the year; administers the House Page program (for 13- and 14-year old students); and administers, in conjunction with the Senate Clerk, the Capitol Tour Guides – all of which promote the rich history of the Capitol, civics education and good citizenship. The House Clerk also provides members of the House of Delegates with year-round office support services involving finance, payroll and benefits, technology and telecommunications, and procurement and logistics as well as facilities management in the Capitol and General Assembly Building.

The staff of the House Clerk’s Office assists the Clerk in performing his many duties and responsibilities. Like the Clerk, these full-time professionals, and the 150 other part-time staff during session, work to ensure the well-ordered, efficient and effective running of the historic institution that is the Virginia House of Delegates.

Clerk Nardo is a graduate of The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia with a degree in Government and studied abroad for a year at Bristol University in England. He is active in his community, having led the Rotary Club of Richmond as its 100th President and was honored as Rotarian of the Year in 2015. He is married to Mary Augusta Barham of Portsmouth, VA and has an adult son, Barham, who lives and works in Spain. He enjoys travel, history, music, being outdoors and is a certified Master Gardener.