10 U.S.C. § 8454 — Midshipmen: appointment; numbers, territorial distribution

(a) The authorized strength^* of the Brigade of Midshipmen, determined for each year as of the day before the last day of the academic year, is 4,400, or a lower number that the Secretary of the Navy prescribes under subsection (h). Subject to that limit, midshipmen are selected as follows:

(1) 65 are selected in order of merit established by competitive examination from the children of members of the armed forces^* who were killed in action; died from wounds or injuries received, or diseases contracted in, active service^*; died from a preexisting injury or disease aggravated by active service; or have a service-connected disability rated at least 100 percent resulting from those causes. They may also be children of members who are in “missing status,” as defined in section 551(2) of title 37, or children of civilian employees who are in “missing status,” as defined in section 5561(5) of title 5. This section does not define “active service” or “missing status.” The Department of Veterans Affairs’ determination about whether the cause of death or disability is service-connected, and about the percentage at which the disability is rated, binds the Secretary of the Navy.

(2) Five are nominated at large by the Vice President. If there is no Vice President, the President pro tempore of the Senate nominates them.

(3) Ten are selected from each State. Each Senator from that State nominates five.

(4) Five are nominated by each Representative in Congress.

(5) Five are selected from the District of Columbia and nominated by the Delegate to the House of Representatives from the District of Columbia.

(6) Four are selected from the Virgin Islands and nominated by the Delegate in Congress from the Virgin Islands.

(7) Six are selected from Puerto Rico. The Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico nominates five, and the Governor of Puerto Rico nominates one who is a native of Puerto Rico.

(8) Five are selected from Guam and nominated by the Delegate in Congress from Guam.

(9) Three are selected from American Samoa and nominated by the Delegate in Congress from American Samoa.

(10) Three are selected from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and nominated by the Delegate in Congress from the commonwealth.

Each Senator, Representative, and Delegate in Congress, including the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico, may nominate 15 people for each vacancy available to that official under this section. The nominations may be submitted without ranking, or with one principal candidate and up to 14 alternates who may be ranked or unranked. A qualified nominee who is not selected under this subsection is treated as a qualified alternate for selection under other provisions of this chapter. When a nominee of a Senator, Representative, or Delegate is selected for appointment as a midshipman, that Senator, Representative, or Delegate must be notified at least 48 hours before the official notification or announcement of the appointment.

(b) The Academy may also appoint the following midshipmen each year:

(1) 100 are selected by the President from the children of members of an armed force who—

(A) are on active duty^*, other than for training, and have served continuously on active duty for at least eight years;

(B) are retired with pay^* or have been granted retired or retainer pay, or died while they were retired with pay or had been granted retired or retainer pay;

(C) are serving as members of reserve components and are credited with at least eight years of service calculated under section 12733 of this title; or

(D) would be entitled to retired pay under chapter 1223 of this title, or would have been entitled to it when they died, except that they have not reached age 60.

However, a person eligible for selection under paragraph (1) of subsection (a) may not be selected under this paragraph. This section does not define “active duty,” “training,” “retired pay,” or “retainer pay.”

(2) 85 are nominated by the Secretary of the Navy from enlisted members of the Regular Navy and the Regular Marine Corps.

(3) 85 are nominated by the Secretary of the Navy from enlisted members of the Navy Reserve and the Marine Corps Reserve.

(4) 20 are nominated by the Secretary of the Navy, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary, from honor graduates of schools designated as honor schools by the Department of the Army^*, the Department of the Navy, or the Department of the Air Force, and from members of the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.

(5) 200 are selected by the Secretary of the Navy in order of merit, prescribed under section 8456 of this title, from qualified alternates nominated by the people named in paragraphs (3) through (10) of subsection (a).

(c) The President may also appoint as midshipmen at the Academy children of people who received the Medal of Honor for acts performed while they were in the armed forces.

(d) The Superintendent of the Naval Academy may nominate 50 people from the country at large for appointment each year. A person nominated under this subsection may not displace an appointment authorized under paragraphs (2) through (9) of subsection (a), and the nomination may not cause the total strength of midshipmen at the Naval Academy to exceed the authorized number.

(e) The Secretary of the Navy may limit the number of midshipmen appointed under subsection (b)(5). If the Secretary does so, and the total number of midshipmen after a new class is admitted would be more than 3,737, no appointments may be made under subsection (b)(2) or (3) of this section or under section 8456 of this title.

(f) On the written request of a Member of Congress, the Superintendent of the Naval Academy must provide the name of the Congressman or other nominating authority responsible for nominating a named or identified person for appointment to the Academy.

(g) For the subsection (a) limit on the Brigade of Midshipmen’s total authorized strength, the Secretary of the Navy may allow the limit for any year to vary by no more than one percent. When applying the limit and any allowed variation, the last day of an academic year is treated as graduation day.

(h)(1) Beginning with the 2003–2004 academic year, the Secretary of the Navy may prescribe yearly increases in the midshipmen strength limit in effect under subsection (a). For any academic year, the increase may be no more than 100 midshipmen, or a smaller number that applies under paragraph (3) for that year. The Secretary may prescribe these yearly increases until the midshipmen strength limit reaches 4,400.

(2) The Secretary must prescribe an increase for an academic year no later than the date on which the President submits to Congress under section 1105 of title 31 the budget for the fiscal year beginning in the same year as that academic year. Whenever the Secretary prescribes an increase, the Secretary must give Congress written notice. The notice must state the amount of the increase, the new midshipmen strength limit after the increase, and the amount of the increase in Senior Navy Reserve Officers’ Training Corps enrollment under each of sections 2104 and 2107 of this title.

(3) An increase under paragraph (1) in the midshipmen strength limit for an academic year may not be larger than the increase, if any, during the preceding academic year in the total number of midshipmen enrolled in the Navy Senior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program under chapter 103 of this title who entered into an agreement under section 2104 or 2107 of this title.

(4) In this subsection, “midshipmen strength limit” means the authorized maximum strength of the Brigade of Midshipmen.