Selective Service Act of 1917

Selective Service Act of 1917
Great Seal of the United States
Other short titles
  • Conscription Act of 1917
  • Enrollment Act of 1917
Long titleAn Act to authorize the President to increase temporarily the military establishment of the United States.
NicknamesSelective Draft Act of 1917
Enacted bythe 65th United States Congress
EffectiveMay 18, 1917
Citations
Public lawPub. L. 65–12
Statutes at Large40 Stat. 76, Chapter 15
Codification
Titles amended50 U.S.C.: War and National Defense
U.S.C. sections created50 U.S.C. Appendix §§ 201–211, 213, 214
Legislative history
  • Introduced in the House as H.R. 3545 by Julius Kahn (R–CA) on April 27, 1917
  • Passed the House on April 28, 1917 (398–24)
  • Passed the Senate on April 28, 1917 (81–8, in lieu of S. 1871)
  • Reported by the joint conference committee on May 16, 1917; agreed to by the House on May 16, 1917 (198–179) and by the Senate on May 17, 1917 (65–8)
  • Signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson on May 18, 1917
Uncle Sam pointing his finger at the viewer in order to recruit soldiers for the American Army during World War I, 1917-1918
Sheet music cover for patriotic song, 1917

The Selective Service Act of 1917 or Selective Draft Act (Pub. L. 65–12, 40 Stat. 76, enacted May 18, 1917) authorized the United States federal government to raise a national army for service in World War I through conscription. It was envisioned in December 1916 and brought to President Woodrow Wilson's attention shortly after the break in relations with Germany in February 1917. The Act itself was drafted by then-Captain (later Brigadier General) Hugh S. Johnson after the United States entered World War I by declaring war on Germany. The Act was canceled with the end of the war on November 11, 1918. The Act was upheld as constitutional by the United States Supreme Court in 1918.[1]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference back was invoked but never defined (see the help page).