United States Secretary of the Army

The Secretary of the Army (SA, SECARM[2] or SECARMY) is a senior civilian official within the United States Department of Defense, with statutory responsibility for all matters relating to the United States Army: manpower, personnel, reserve affairs, installations, environmental issues, weapons systems and equipment acquisition, communications and financial management.

Not to be confused with Chief of Staff of the United States Army.

United States Secretary of the Army
Flag of the Secretary of the Army[1]
Incumbent
John E. Whitley
(Acting)
since January 20, 2021
United States Department of the Army
StyleMr. Secretary
Reports toSecretary of Defense
AppointerPresident of the United States
with Senate advice and consent
Term lengthNo fixed term
PrecursorSecretary of War
FormationSeptember 18, 1947
First holderKenneth Claiborne Royall
Succession2nd in SecDef succession
DeputyUnder Secretary of the Army
Chief of Staff of the Army
SalaryExecutive Schedule, Level II
WebsiteOfficial website

The Secretary of the Army is nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. The Secretary is a non-Cabinet level official, subordinate to the Secretary of Defense.[3] This position was created on September 18, 1947, replacing the United States Secretary of War, when the Department of War was split into the Department of the Army and Department of the Air Force.[4]

On January 20, 2021, John E. Whitley was appointed as the Acting Secretary of the Army.

Roles and responsibilities

The Army senior leadership consists of two civilians; the Secretary of the Army and the United States Under Secretary of the Army—and two military officers of four-star rank—the Chief of Staff of the United States Army and the Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army.

The Secretary of the Army (10 U.S.C. § 3013) is in effect the chief executive officer of the Department of the Army, and the Chief of Staff of the Army works directly for the Secretary. The Secretary presents and justifies Army policies, plans, programs, and budgets to the Secretary of Defense, other executive branch officials, and to the Congressional Defense Committees. The Secretary also communicates Army policies, plans, programs, capabilities, and accomplishments to the public. As necessary, the Secretary convenes meetings with the senior leadership of the Army to debate issues, provide direction, and seek advice. The Secretary is a member of the Defense Acquisition Board.

The Secretary of the Army has several responsibilities under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, including the authority to convene general courts-martial.[5]

Office of the Secretary of the Army

The Office of the Secretary of the Army is composed of the Under Secretary of the Army, the Assistant Secretaries of the Army, the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army, the General Counsel of the Department of the Army, the Inspector General of the Army, the Chief of Legislation, and the Army Reserve Forces Policy Committee. Other offices may be established by law or by the Secretary of the Army. No more than 1,865 Army officers on the active-duty list may be assigned or detailed to permanent duty in the Office of the Secretary of the Army and on the Army staff.[6]

Chart showing the organization of the Office of the Secretary of Army and its relationship to the Army Staff.

Chronological list of secretaries of the Army

Kenneth Claiborne Royall, the last secretary of war, became the first Secretary of the Army when the National Defense Act of 1947 took effect. Gordon Gray was the last Army Secretary to hold the Cabinet status, which was henceforth assigned to the Secretary of Defense.[4][7]

Prior military service is not a requirement, but several have served in the United States armed forces. Secretary Stone (1989-1993) is the only holder to serve in the military outside of the United States.

No. Image Name Term of office President(s) served under
1 Kenneth Claiborne Royall September 18, 1947 – April 27, 1949 Harry S. Truman
2 Gordon Gray[8] April 28, 1949 – April 12, 1950
3 Frank Pace April 12, 1950 – January 20, 1953
– Earl D. Johnson
Acting[8]		 January 20, 1953 – February 4, 1953 Dwight D. Eisenhower
4 Robert T. Stevens February 4, 1953 – July 21, 1955
5 Wilber M. Brucker July 21, 1955 – January 19, 1961
6 Elvis Jacob Stahr Jr. January 24, 1961 – June 30, 1962 John F. Kennedy
7 Cyrus Roberts Vance July 5, 1962 – January 21, 1964 John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson
8 Stephen Ailes January 28, 1964 – July 1, 1965 Lyndon B. Johnson
9 Stanley R. Resor July 2, 1965 – June 30, 1971 Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon
10 Robert F. Froehlke July 1, 1971 – May 14, 1973 Richard Nixon
11 Howard H. Callaway May 15, 1973 – July 3, 1975 Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford
– Norman R. Augustine
Acting[8]		 July 3, 1975 – August 5, 1975 Gerald Ford
12 Martin R. Hoffmann August 5, 1975 – January 20, 1977
13 Clifford Alexander Jr. February 14, 1977 – January 20, 1981 Jimmy Carter
– Percy A. Pierre
Acting[8]		 January 21, 1981 – January 29, 1981
14 John O. Marsh Jr. January 30, 1981 – August 14, 1989 Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush
15 Michael P. W. Stone August 14, 1989 – January 20, 1993 George H. W. Bush
– John W. Shannon
Acting[9]		 January 20, 1993 – August 26, 1993 Bill Clinton
– Gordon R. Sullivan
Acting[10][11]		 August 28, 1993 – November 21, 1993
16 Togo D. West Jr. November 22, 1993 – May 4, 1997
– Robert M. Walker
Acting[8]		 December 2, 1997 – July 1, 1998
17 Louis Caldera July 2, 1998 – January 20, 2001
– Gregory R. Dahlberg
Acting		 January 20, 2001 – March 4, 2001 George W. Bush
– Joseph W. Westphal
Acting[8]		 March 5, 2001 – May 31, 2001
18 Thomas E. White May 31, 2001 – May 9, 2003
– Les Brownlee
Acting		 May 10, 2003 – November 18, 2004
19 Francis J. Harvey November 19, 2004 – March 9, 2007
20 Pete Geren March 9, 2007 – September 21, 2009 George W. Bush, Barack Obama
21 John M. McHugh September 21, 2009 – November 1, 2015 Barack Obama
– Eric Fanning
Acting		 November 3, 2015 – January 11, 2016
– Patrick Murphy
Acting		 January 11, 2016 – May 17, 2016
22 Eric Fanning May 17, 2016 – January 20, 2017
– Robert Speer
Acting		 January 20, 2017 – August 2, 2017 Donald Trump
– Ryan McCarthy
Acting		 August 2, 2017 – November 20, 2017
23 Mark Esper November 20, 2017 – July 23, 2019[12]
– Ryan McCarthy
Acting		 June 24, 2019 – July 15, 2019
24 Ryan McCarthy July 23, 2019 – January 20, 2021
Acting: July 23, 2019 – September 30, 2019
– John E. Whitley
Acting		 January 20, 2021 – present Joe Biden

References
  1. http://www.apd.army.mil/pdffiles/r840_10.pdf Archived June 7, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, accessed on January 4, 2012.
  2. "SECARM sets goals, timeline for Rapid Capabilities Office: AUSA exclusive". defensenews.com. October 3, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2018.
  3. "US CODE: Title 10,3013. Secretary of the Army". Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  4. Bell, William Gardner (1992). ""Kenneth Claiborne Royall"". Secretaries of War and Secretaries of the Army: Portraits and Biographical Sketches. United States Army Center of Military History. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  5. "Secretary of the Army". Archived from the original on September 21, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  6. "US CODE: Title 10,3014. Office of the Secretary of the Army". Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  7. Bell, William Gardner. ""Intro - Secretaries of War & Secretaries of the Army"". Secretaries of War and Secretaries of the Army: Portraits & Biographical Sketches. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  10. The Daily Sentinel (Ohio/West Virginia), Acting Army Chief Ticketed for Shoplifting, August 29, 1993
  11. U.S. Organization Chart Service, Department of Defense Fact Book, 2006, page 17
  12. Dickstein, Corey (June 21, 2019). "Former Ranger McCarthy will take on duties of Army secretary on Monday". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved June 29, 2019. While Esper is serving as acting defense secretary, he will technically retain the title of secretary of the Army, one of the officials said.
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