§131. Office of the Secretary of Defense

(a) 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 his duties and responsibilities and to carry out such other duties as may be prescribed by law.

(b) The Office of the Secretary of Defense is composed of the following:

(1) The Deputy Secretary of Defense.

(2) The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics.

(3) The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.

(4) The Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller).

(5) The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness.

(6) The Director of Defense Research and Engineering.

(7) The Assistant Secretaries of Defense.

(8) The Director of Operational Test and Evaluation.

(9) The General Counsel of the Department of Defense.

(10) The Inspector General of the Department of Defense.

(11) Such other offices and officials as may be established by law or the Secretary of Defense may establish or designate in the Office.

(c) 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.

(d) 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.

(Added Pub. L. 99–433, title I, §104, Oct. 1, 1986, 100 Stat. 996 ; amended Pub. L. 103–160, div. A, title IX, §906(a), Nov. 30, 1993, 107 Stat. 1729 ; Pub. L. 103–337, div. A, title IX, §903(b)(1), Oct. 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 2823 ; Pub. L. 104–106, div. A, title IX, §903(e)(1), Feb. 10, 1996, 110 Stat. 402 ; Pub. L. 104–201, div. A, title IX, §901, Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2617 ; Pub. L. 106–65, div. A, title IX, §911(d)(1), Oct. 5, 1999, 113 Stat. 719 .)

Prior Provisions

A prior section 131 was renumbered section 111 of this title.

Amendments

1999-Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 106–65 substituted "Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics" for "Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology".

1996-Subsec. (b)(6) to (11). Pub. L. 104–106, §903(a), (e)(1), which directed amendment of subsec. (b), eff. Jan. 31, 1997, by striking out pars. (6) and (8) and redesignating pars. (7), (9), (10), and (11) as (6), (7), (8), and (9), respectively, was repealed by Pub. L. 104–201.

1994-Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 103–337 substituted "Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)" for "Comptroller".

1993-Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–160 amended subsec. (b) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (b) read as follows: "The Office of the Secretary of Defense is composed of the following:

"(1) The Deputy Secretary of Defense.

"(2) The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition.

"(3) The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.

"(4) The Director of Defense Research and Engineering.

"(5) The Assistant Secretaries of Defense.

"(6) The Comptroller of the Department of Defense.

"(7) The Director of Operational Test and Evaluation.

"(8) The General Counsel of the Department of Defense.

"(9) The Inspector General of the Department of Defense.

"(10) Such other offices and officials as may be established by law or the Secretary of Defense may establish or designate in the Office."

Effective Date of 1996 Amendment

Section 903(a) of Pub. L. 104–106, which provided that the amendments made by section 903 of Pub. L. 104–106 (amending this section and sections 138, 176, 1056, 1216, 1587, and 10201 of this title, repealing sections 133a, 134a, 137, and 142 of this title, and amending provisions set out as a note under section 167 of this title) were to take effect on Jan. 31, 1997, was repealed by Pub. L. 104–201, div. A, title IX, §901, Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2617 .

Defense Acquisition Workforce

Pub. L. 105–85, div. A, title IX, §912(a)–(e), Nov. 18, 1997, 111 Stat. 1860 , 1861, required Secretary of Defense to accomplish reductions in defense acquisition personnel positions, to report on specific acquisition positions previously eliminated, to submit an implementation plan to streamline and improve acquisition organizations, to review acquisition organizations and functions, and to require certain duties of Task Force on Defense Reform.

Reduction of Personnel Assigned to Office of the Secretary of Defense

Section 903 of Pub. L. 104–201, which provided for phased reduction of number of personnel assigned to or employed in functions in Office of the Secretary of Defense, was repealed and restated in section 143 of this title by Pub. L. 105–85, div. A, title IX, §911(d)(1), (3), Nov. 18, 1997, 111 Stat. 1859 , 1860.

Organization of Office of the Secretary of Defense

Section 901 of Pub. L. 104–106, as amended by Pub. L. 104–201, div. A, title IX, §903(g), Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2618 , provided that:

"(a) Findings.-Congress makes the following findings:

"(1) The statutory provisions that as of the date of the enactment of this Act [Feb. 10, 1996] govern the organization of the Office of the Secretary of Defense have evolved from enactment of a number of executive branch legislative proposals and congressional initiatives over a period of years.

"(2) The May 1995 report of the congressionally mandated Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces included a number of recommendations relating to the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

"(3) The Secretary of Defense has decided to create a special Department task force and to conduct other reviews to review many of the Commission's recommendations.

"(4) The Secretary of Defense has decided to institute a 5 percent per year reduction of civilian personnel assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, including the Washington Headquarters Service and the Defense Support Activities, for the period from fiscal year 1996 through fiscal year 2001.

"(5) Over the ten-year period from 1986 through 1995, defense spending in real dollars has been reduced by 34 percent and military end-strengths have been reduced by 28 percent. During the same period, the number of civilian employees of the Office of the Secretary of Defense has increased by 22 percent.

"(6) To achieve greater efficiency and to revalidate the role and mission of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, a comprehensive review of the organizations and functions of that Office and of the personnel needed to carry out those functions is required.

"(b) Review.-The Secretary of Defense shall conduct a further review of the organizations and functions of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, including the Washington Headquarters Service and the Defense Support Activities, and the personnel needed to carry out those functions. The review shall include the following:

"(1) An assessment of the appropriate functions of the Office and whether the Office of the Secretary of Defense or some of its component parts should be organized along mission lines.

"(2) An assessment of the adequacy of the present organizational structure to efficiently and effectively support the Secretary in carrying out his responsibilities in a manner that ensures civilian authority in the Department of Defense.

"(3) An assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of the use of political appointees to fill the positions of the various Under Secretaries of Defense, Assistant Secretaries of Defense, and Deputy Under Secretaries of Defense.

"(4) An assessment of the extent of unnecessary duplication of functions between the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Staff.

"(5) An assessment of the extent of unnecessary duplication of functions between the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the military departments.

"(6) An assessment of the appropriate number of positions referred to in paragraph (3) and of Deputy Assistant Secretaries of Defense.

"(7) An assessment of whether some or any of the functions currently performed by the Office of Humanitarian and Refugee Affairs are more properly or effectively performed by another agency of Government or elsewhere within the Department of Defense.

"(8) An assessment of the efficacy of the Joint Requirements Oversight Council and whether it is advisable or necessary to establish a statutory charter for this organization.

"(9) An assessment of any benefits or efficiencies derived from decentralizing certain functions currently performed by the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

"(10) An assessment of the appropriate size, number, and functional responsibilities of the Defense Agencies and other Department of Defense support organizations.

"(c) Report.-Not later than March 1, 1996, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report containing-

"(1) his findings and conclusions resulting from the review under subsection (b); and

"(2) a plan for implementing resulting recommendations, including proposals for legislation (with supporting rationale) that would be required as a result of the review."

Management Studies of Office of the Secretary of Defense

Section 109 of Pub. L. 99–433 provided that:

"(a) Secretary of Defense Study.-The Secretary of Defense shall conduct a study of the functions and organization of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The study shall consider whether the present allocation of functions to, and the organizational structure of, the Office constitute the most effective, efficient, and economical allocation and structure of the Office to assist the Secretary in carrying out his duties and responsibilities. The study shall include consideration of each of the matters specified in subsection (d).

"(b) Service Secretaries Joint Study.-(1) The Secretaries of the military departments shall conduct a joint study of the functions and organization of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The study shall be conducted independently of the study conducted by the Secretary of Defense under subsection (a). The Secretaries shall submit a joint report to the Secretary of Defense on such study at a time specified by the Secretary. Except as provided in paragraph (2), the report shall include a discussion of and recommendations concerning each of the matters specified in subsection (d).

"(2) The Secretary of Defense shall determine the extent to which, and prescribe the procedures under which, the Secretaries of the military departments shall study the matters specified in subsection (d)(1)(A) relating to contingency planning and military operations.

"(c) Chairman of JCS Study.-The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shall conduct a study of the functions and organization of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The study shall be conducted independently of the study conducted by the Secretary of Defense under subsection (a). The Chairman shall submit a report to the Secretary of Defense on such study at a time specified by the Secretary. The report shall include a discussion of and recommendations concerning the matters specified in paragraphs (1)(C), (1)(D), (2), (3), (5), and (6) of subsection (d).

"(d) Matters To Be Included.-The study required by subsection (a) shall include consideration of the following:

"(1) Whether the present organization of the Office-

"(A) is optimally structured to assist the Secretary of Defense in the effective exercise of civilian control of the Department of Defense, including civilian control of-

"(i) defense policy development and strategic planning;

"(ii) program and budget development;

"(iii) policy, program, and budget execution;

"(iv) contingency planning; and

"(v) military operations;

"(B) is the most effective and efficient organization for the initiation, development, and articulation of defense policy;

"(C) ensures that strategic planning and contingency planning are linked to, and derived from, national security strategy, policies, and objectives; and

"(D) inhibits integration of the capabilities of the Armed Forces along mission lines.

"(2) Whether the planning, programming, and budgeting system of the Department of Defense (including the role of the Office in such system) needs to be revised-

"(A) to strengthen strategic planning and policy direction;

"(B) to ensure that strategic planning is consistent with national security strategy, policies, and objectives;

"(C) to ensure that there is a sufficient relationship between strategic planning and the resource levels projected to be available for the period for which the planning is to be effective;

"(D) to ensure that strategic planning and program development give sufficient attention to alliances with other nations;

"(E) to provide for more effective oversight, control, and evaluation of policy, program, and budget execution; and

"(F) to ensure that past program and budget decisions are effectively evaluated, that such evaluations are supported by consistent, complete, and timely financial and performance data, and that such evaluations are fully considered in the next planning, programming, and budgeting cycle.

"(3) Whether the major force program categories of the Five-Year Defense Plan could be restructured to better assist decisionmaking and management control.

"(4) Means to improve and strengthen the oversight function within each element of the Office in policy areas not addressed by the planning, programming, and budgeting system.

"(5) Factors inhibiting efficient and effective execution of the functions of the Office, including factors relating to-

"(A) duplication of functions (both within the Office and between the Office and other elements of the Department);

"(B) insufficient information; and

"(C) insufficient resources (including personnel).

"(6) Alternative allocations of authorities and functions of the Office and other reorganization proposals for the Office, including the desirability of-

"(A) establishing Under Secretaries of Defense for mission-oriented areas of responsibility;

"(B) decentralizing functions of the Office;

"(C) reducing the number of officials reporting directly to the Secretary of Defense; and

"(D) changing the ratio of members of the Armed Forces to civilian employees in the Office.

"(7) Whether political appointees in the Office of the Secretary of Defense have sufficient experience and expertise, upon appointment, to be capable of contributing immediately to effective policy formulation and management.

"(e) Analysis of Civilian Control.-(1) The Secretary of Defense, in considering under subsection (d)(1)(A) whether effective civilian control of the Department of Defense is best assisted by the current structure of the Office, shall examine the functions performed in the Office by-

"(A) members of the Armed Forces on the active-duty list; and

"(B) members of the Armed Forces in a retired status and members of the reserve components who are employed in a civilian capacity.

"(2) Such examination shall include a determination of the total number of positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense above grade GS–8 and the military equivalent (as determined by the Secretary of Defense), and of such number-

"(A) the number of positions held by members of the Armed Forces on the active-duty list, shown for the military equivalent of each civilian pay grade by number and as a percentage of the total number of positions in the Office in the civilian pay grade concerned and in the military equivalent of such civilian pay grade;

"(B) the number of such positions held by members of the Armed Forces in a retired status who are serving in a civilian capacity, shown for each civilian pay grade in the same manner as provided under clause (A); and

"(C) the number of such positions held by members of the reserve components who are serving in a civilian capacity, shown for each civilian pay grade in the same manner as provided under clause (A).

"(3) In determining the total number of positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense in grades above GS–8, the Secretary shall exclude positions which are primarily clerical or secretarial.

"(f) Independent Contractor Study.-The Secretary shall provide for an independent study to be carried out by a contractor to consider the same matters required to be considered by the Secretary under subsection (d). The Secretary shall ensure that the contractor has full access to such information as the contractor requires and that the contractor otherwise receives full cooperation from all officials and entities of the Department of Defense.

"(g) Report to Congress.-(1) The Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report on the Secretary's study under subsection (a). The report shall include-

"(A) the findings and conclusions of the Secretary with respect to each of the matters set forth in subsection (d);

"(B) the findings and statistical determinations required under subsection (e); and

"(C) any recommendations of the Secretary for organizational changes in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and a description of the means for implementing each recommendation.

"(2) The Secretary shall include with the report a copy of the reports to the Secretary under subsections (b) and (c) and a copy of the report of the independent contractor under subsection (f), together with such comments on each such report as the Secretary considers appropriate.

"(3) The report under this subsection shall be submitted not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 1, 1986]."

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in section 192 of this title.