10 U.S.C. § 7442: Cadets: appointment; numbers, territorial distribution

65 cadets selected in order of merit as established by competitive examinations from the children of members of the armed forces who were killed in action or died of, or have a service-connected disability rated at not less than 100 per centum resulting from, wounds or injuries received or diseases contracted in, or preexisting injury or disease aggravated by, active service, children of members who are in a “missing status” as defined in section 551(2) of title 37 , and children of civilian employees who are in “missing status” as defined in section 5561(5) of title 5 . The determination of the Department of Veterans Affairs as to service connection of the cause of death or disability, and the percentage at which the disability is rated, is binding upon the Secretary of the Army. Five cadets nominated at large by the Vice President or, if there is no Vice President, by the President pro tempore of the Senate. Ten cadets from each State, five of whom are nominated by each Senator from that State. Five cadets from each congressional district, nominated by the Representative from the district. Five cadets from the District of Columbia, nominated by the Delegate to the House of Representatives from the District of Columbia. Four cadets from the Virgin Islands, nominated by the Delegate in Congress from the Virgin Islands. Six cadets from Puerto Rico, five of whom are nominated by the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico and one who is a native of Puerto Rico nominated by the Governor of Puerto Rico. Five cadets from Guam, nominated by the Delegate in Congress from Guam. Three cadets from American Samoa, nominated by the Delegate in Congress from American Samoa. Three cadets from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, nominated by the Delegate in Congress from the commonwealth. are on active duty (other than for training) and who have served continuously on active duty for at least eight years; are, or who died while they were, retired with pay or granted retired or retainer pay; are serving as members of reserve components and are credited with at least eight years of service computed under section 12733 of this title ; or would be, or who died while they would have been, entitled to retired pay under chapter 1223 of this title except for not having attained 60 years of age; 85 nominated by the Secretary of the Army from enlisted members of the Regular Army. 85 nominated by the Secretary of the Army from enlisted members of reserve components of the Army. 20 nominated by the Secretary of the Army, under regulations prescribed by him, from the 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 Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. 200 1 selected by the Secretary of the Army in order of merit (prescribed pursuant to section 7443 of this title ) from qualified alternates nominated by persons named in paragraphs (3) through (10) of subsection (a). The President may also appoint as cadets at the Academy children of persons who have been awarded the Medal of Honor for acts performed while in the armed forces. The Superintendent may nominate for appointment each year 50 persons from the country at large. Persons nominated under this paragraph may not displace any appointment authorized under paragraphs (2) through (9) of subsection (a) and may not cause the total strength of the Corps of Cadets to exceed the authorized number. If the annual quota of cadets under subsection (b)(1), (2), (3) is not filled, the Secretary may fill the vacancies by nominating for appointment other candidates from any of these sources who were found best qualified on examination for admission and not otherwise nominated. Each candidate for admission nominated under paragraphs (3) through (9) of subsection (a) must be domiciled in the State, or in the congressional district, from which he is nominated, or in the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, or the Virgin Islands, if nominated from one of those places. Cadets chargeable to each nominating authority named in subsection (a)(3) or (4) may not be limited to less than four. 27 appointments under subsection (b)(1); 27 appointments under subsection (b)(2); 27 appointments under subsection (b)(3); and 13 appointments under subsection (b)(4). 27 appointments under subsection (b)(2); 27 appointments under subsection (b)(3); and 13 appointments under subsection (b)(4). The limitations provided for in this subsection do not affect the operation of subsection (e). The Superintendent shall furnish to any Member of Congress, upon the written request of such Member, the name of the Congressman or other nominating authority responsible for the nomination of any named or identified person for appointment to the Academy. For purposes of the limitation in subsection (a) establishing the aggregate authorized strength of the Corps of Cadets, the Secretary of the Army may for any year permit a variance in that limitation by not more than one percent. In applying that limitation, and any such variance, the last day of an academic year shall be considered to be graduation day. Beginning with the 2003–2004 academic year, the Secretary of the Army may prescribe annual increases in the cadet strength limit in effect under subsection (a). For any academic year, any such increase shall be by no more than 100 cadets or such lesser number as applies under paragraph (3) for that year. Such annual increases may be prescribed until the cadet strength limit is 4,400. Any increase in the cadet strength limit under paragraph (1) with respect to an academic year shall be prescribed not later than the date on which the budget of the President is submitted to Congress under section 1105 of title 31 for the fiscal year beginning in the same year as the year in which that academic year begins. Whenever the Secretary prescribes such an increase, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a notice in writing of the increase. The notice shall state the amount of the increase in the cadet strength limit and the new cadet strength limit, as so increased, and the amount of the increase in Senior Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps enrollment under each of sections 2104 and 2107 of this title. The amount of an increase under paragraph (1) in the cadet strength limit for an academic year may not exceed the increase (if any) for the preceding academic year in the total number of cadets enrolled in the Army Senior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program under chapter 103 of this title who have entered into an agreement under section 2104 or 2107 of this title. In this subsection, the term “cadet strength limit” means the authorized maximum strength of the Corps of Cadets of the Academy. Not later than December 31, 2026 , the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Superintendents of the military service academies, shall ensure that there is a uniform online portal for all military service academies that enables Members of Congress and other nominating sources to nominate individuals for appointment to each academy through a secure website. collect, from each nominating source, the demographic information described in subsection (b) for each individual nominated to attend a military service academy; and collect the information required to be included in each annual report of the Secretary under subsection (c) in a manner that enables the Secretary to automatically compile such information when preparing the report. The portal shall allow Members of Congress, other nominating sources, and their designees to view their past nomination records for all application cycles. The Secretary, in consultation with the Superintendents of the military service academies, shall establish standard classifications that cadets, midshipmen, and applicants to the academies may use to report gender, race, and ethnicity and to provide other demographic information in connection with admission to or enrollment in an academy. The standard classifications established under paragraph (1) shall be consistent with the standard classifications specified in Office of Management and Budget Directive No. 15 (pertaining to race and ethnic standards for Federal statistics and administrative reporting) or any successor directive. applications for admission to the military service academies; and the military personnel records of cadets and midshipmen enrolled in such academies. Not later than September 30 of each year beginning after the establishment of the online portal, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the demographics of applicants to military service academies for the most recently concluded application year. The number of individuals who submitted an application for admission to the academy in the application year covered by the report. the overall demographics of applicant pool, disaggregated by the classifications established under subsection (b); the number and percentage who received a nomination, disaggregated by the classifications established under subsection (b); the number and percentage who received an offer for appointment to the academy, disaggregated by the classifications established under subsection (b); and the number and percentage who accepted an appointment to the academy, disaggregated by the classifications established under subsection (b). Anything the Secretary determines to be significant regarding gender, race, ethnicity, or other demographic information, described in subsection (b), of such individuals. In preparing each report under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Superintendents of the military service academies. make the results of each report under paragraph (1) available on a publicly accessible website of the Department of Defense; and ensure that any data included with the report is made available in a machine-readable format that is downloadable, searchable, and sortable. The term ‘application year’ means the period beginning on January 1 of one year and ending on June 1 of the following year. The term ‘machine-readable’ has the meaning given that term in section 3502(18) of title 44 , United States Code. the United States Military Academy; the United States Naval Academy; and the United States Air Force Academy.”