10 U.S.C. § 131: Office of the Secretary of Defense

There is in the Department of Defense an Office of the Secretary of Defense. The function of the Office is to assist the Secretary of Defense in carrying out the Secretary’s duties and responsibilities and to carry out such other duties as may be prescribed by law. The Deputy Secretary of Defense. Repealed. Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title IX, § 901(a)(2)(A) , Jan. 1, 2021 , 134 Stat. 3794 .] The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. The Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller). The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. The Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. The Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation. The Director of Operational Test and Evaluation. The General Counsel of the Department of Defense. The Inspector General of the Department of Defense. The Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense, who reports directly to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary without intervening authority. The Deputy Under Secretaries of Defense. The Assistant Secretaries of Defense. The two Deputy Directors within the Office of the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation under section 139a(c) of this title . The Director of Small Business Programs appointed pursuant to section 144 of this title . The official designated under section 1501(a) of this title to have responsibility for Department of Defense matters relating to missing persons as set forth in section 1501 of this title . The Director of Military Family Readiness Policy under section 1781 of this title . The Director of the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight assigned pursuant to section 2228(a) of this title . The official designated under section 4273(a) of this title to have responsibility for conducting and overseeing performance assessments and root cause analyses for major defense acquisition programs. Such other offices and officials as may be established by law or the Secretary of Defense may establish or designate in the Office. Officers of the armed forces may be assigned or detailed to permanent duty in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. However, the Secretary may not establish a military staff in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The Secretary of each military department, and the civilian employees and members of the armed forces under the jurisdiction of the Secretary, shall cooperate fully with personnel of the Office of the Secretary of Defense to achieve efficient administration of the Department of Defense and to carry out effectively the authority, direction, and control of the Secretary of Defense. Except as provided in paragraph (2), this section [see Tables for classification] and the amendments made by this section shall take effect on January 1, 2011 . Subsection (i) [enacting and amending provisions set out as notes under section 137a of this title ] and the amendments made by that subsection, and subsection ( o ) [enacting provisions set out as a note under this section], shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act [ Jan. 7, 2011 ].” the development of combined joint all-domain command and control (commonly known as ‘CJADC2’) capabilities in support of integrated joint warfighting; and the delivery of such capabilities to the combatant commands. Identifying new technology and operational concepts for experimentation and prototyping for delivery to the Joint Force to address key operational challenges. Providing technical support for the Joint Force in exploring and analyzing new combined joint all-domain command and control capabilities and operational concepts, including through advanced modeling and simulation. Executing experimentation associated with such capabilities through the Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve or another mechanism. Enabling the acquisition of cross-domain, joint, and cross-system mission capabilities, including resourcing of modifications necessary for integration and interoperability among mission components. Ensuring the effectiveness of cross-domain, joint, and cross-system mission capabilities through analysis and testing. gain operational awareness, make decisions, and take actions; integrate relevant data sources to support target selection, target prioritization, and weapon-target pairing; and assign targets through networks, tools, and systems of the Armed Forces and combat support agencies. In establishing an initial set of roles and responsibilities under subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall prioritize the development and delivery of capabilities that meet the requirements of the United States Indo-Pacific Command. any activities carried out in accordance with the roles and responsibilities under subsection (a); and any plans associated with such roles and responsibilities.” developing, managing, and coordinating policy and plans that address the full spectrum of military mobilization readiness, including full mobilization of personnel from volunteers to other persons inducted into the Armed Forces under the Military Selective Service Act ( 50 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.); providing Congress and the Selective Service System with updated requirements and timelines for obtaining inductees in the event of a national emergency requiring mass mobilization and induction of personnel under the Military Selective Service Act for training and service in the Armed Forces; and providing Congress with a plan, developed in coordination with the Selective Service System, to induct large numbers of volunteers who may respond to a national call for volunteers during an emergency. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Dec. 27, 2021 ], the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a plan for obtaining inductees as part of a mobilization timeline for the Selective Service System. The plan shall include a description of resources, locations, and capabilities of the Armed Forces required to train, equip, and integrate personnel inducted into the Armed Forces under the Military Selective Service Act into the total force, addressing scenarios that would include 300,000, 600,000, and 1,000,000 new volunteer and other personnel inducted into the Armed Forces under the Military Selective Service Act. The plan may be provided in classified form.” The Secretary of Defense shall designate a single official or existing entity within the Office of the Secretary of Defense to serve as the official or entity (as the case may be) with principal responsibility in the Department of Defense for providing oversight of the registered sex offender management program of the Department. monitor compliance with Department of Defense Instruction 5525.20 and other relevant polices; compile data on members serving in the military departments who have been convicted of a qualifying sex offense, including data on the sex offender registration status of each such member; maintain statistics on the total number of active duty service members in each military department who are required to register as sex offenders; and perform such other duties as the Secretary of Defense determines to be appropriate. the compliance of the military departments with the policies of the Department of Defense relating to registered sex offenders; the results of the data compilation described in subsection (b)(2); and any other matters the Secretary determines to be appropriate. In this section, the term ‘military departments’ has the meaning given that term in section 101(a)(8) of title 10 , United States Code.” Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 13, 2018 ], the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees [Committees on Armed Services and Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives] a plan to streamline the oversight framework of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, including any efficiencies and the potential to reduce, realign, or otherwise restructure current Assistant Secretary and Deputy Assistant Secretary positions with responsibilities for overseeing countering weapons of mass destruction policy, programs, and activities. Not later than 90 days after the submission of the oversight plan under subsection (b), the Secretary of Defense shall issue a directive for the implementation of the oversight plan by the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction-Unity of Effort Council.” To discharge responsibility for overseeing the efforts of the Department of Defense to collect, analyze, and monitor data on the use of food assistance programs by members of the Armed Forces on active duty. To establish and maintain relationships with other departments and agencies of the Federal Government to facilitate the discharge of the responsibility specified in paragraph (1).” The Secretary of Defense serving in that position as of March 1, 2017 , may establish within the Office of the Secretary of Defense a unit of personnel that shall be responsible for providing expertise and support throughout the Department of Defense in an effort to improve the implementation of policies and priorities across the Department. The unit may be known as the ‘delivery unit’. The unit established pursuant to subsection (a) shall consist of not more than 30 individuals selected by the Secretary primarily from among individuals outside the Government who have significant experience and expertise in management consulting, organizational architecture, relationship management, or data analytics. To advise the Secretary on improving the implementation and delivery of policies and priorities of the Department, including making recommendations on establishing performance or implementation targets, assisting in the development of delivery plans to achieve targets, and monitoring and measuring progress. To work across organizations, missions, and functions of the Department in order to identify obstacles to improving the implementation of policies and priorities of the Department, including organization, culture, and incentives, and to recommend options to the Secretary for addressing such obstacles. The unit established pursuant to subsection (a) shall sunset on January 31, 2021 .” Repealed. Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title X, § 1081(b)(1)(D) , Dec. 12, 2017 , 131 Stat. 1597 .] Any reference to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy Plans and Programs or to the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment in any provision of law or in any rule, regulation, or other paper of the United States shall be deemed to refer to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment.” The Director of Defense Research and Engineering is redesignated as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. The Director of Operational Energy Plans and Programs is redesignated as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy Plans and Programs [now Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment]. The Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Nuclear and Chemical and Biological Defense Programs is redesignated as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs. Any reference in any law, rule, regulation, paper, or other record of the United States to an office of the Department of Defense redesignated by paragraph (1) shall be deemed to be a reference to such office as so redesignated.” Notwithstanding this section [see Tables for classification] and the amendments made by this section, the individual serving as specified in paragraph (2) on December 31, 2010 , may continue to serve in the applicable position specified in that paragraph after that date without the requirement for appointment by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. In the case of the individual serving as Director of Defense Research and Engineering, the position of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. In the case of the individual serving as Director of Operational Energy Plans and Programs, the position of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy Plans and Programs. In the case of the individual serving as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Nuclear and Chemical and Biological Defense Programs, the position of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs.”