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United States Secretary of the Army

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

United States Secretary of the Army
Seal of the U.S. Department of the Army
Flag of the secretary[1]
since May 28, 2021
United States Department of the Army
StyleMadam Secretary
Reports toUnited States Secretary 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 Edit this at Wikidata

The secretary of the Army (SA 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.

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.[2] This position was created on September 18, 1947, replacing the secretary of war, when the Department of War was split into the Department of the Army and Department of the Air Force.[3]

On May 28, 2021, Christine Wormuth was sworn in as the 25th (and current) secretary of the Army, the first woman to serve in the role.[4]

Roles and responsibilities

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The Army senior leadership consists of two civilians; the secretary of the Army and the 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.

The secretary of the Army (10 U.S.C. § 7013) 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

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The Office of the Secretary of the Army is composed of the under secretary of the Army, the assistant secretaries of the Army, the administrative assistant to the secretary, 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 1,900 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]

Each civilian has a military counterpart, as shown in the diagram below. Thus, for example, the Army G-1 has a defined responsibility to the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs), the ASA (M&RA).

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

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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.[3][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.

Image Name Start End President(s)
Kenneth Claiborne Royall September 18, 1947 April 27, 1949 Harry S. Truman
(1945–1953)
Gordon Gray[8] April 28, 1949 April 12, 1950
Frank Pace April 12, 1950 January 20, 1953
Earl D. Johnson
Acting[8] 		January 20, 1953 February 4, 1953 Dwight D. Eisenhower
(1953–1961)
Robert T. Stevens February 4, 1953 July 21, 1955
Wilber M. Brucker July 21, 1955 January 19, 1961
Elvis Jacob Stahr Jr. January 24, 1961 June 30, 1962 John F. Kennedy
(1961–1963)
Cyrus Vance July 5, 1962 January 21, 1964
Lyndon B. Johnson
(1963–1969)
Stephen Ailes January 28, 1964 July 1, 1965
Stanley Resor July 2, 1965 June 30, 1971
Richard Nixon
(1969–1974)
Robert Froehlke July 1, 1971 May 14, 1973
Bo Callaway May 15, 1973 July 3, 1975
Gerald Ford
(1974–1977)
Norman R. Augustine
Acting[8] 		July 3, 1975 August 5, 1975
Martin Hoffmann August 5, 1975 January 20, 1977
Clifford Alexander Jr. February 14, 1977 January 20, 1981 Jimmy Carter
(1977–1981)
Percy A. Pierre
Acting[8] 		January 21, 1981 January 29, 1981 Ronald Reagan
(1981–1989)
John Marsh January 30, 1981 August 14, 1989
George H. W. Bush
(1989–1993)
Michael P. W. Stone August 14, 1989 January 20, 1993
John W. Shannon
Acting[9][10] 		January 20, 1993 August 26, 1993 Bill Clinton
(1993–2001)
Gordon R. Sullivan
Acting[11][12] 		August 28, 1993 November 21, 1993
Togo D. West Jr. November 22, 1993 May 4, 1997
Robert M. Walker
Acting[8] 		December 2, 1997 July 1, 1998
Louis Caldera July 2, 1998 January 20, 2001
Gregory R. Dahlberg
Acting 		January 20, 2001 March 4, 2001 George W. Bush
(2001–2009)
Joseph W. Westphal
Acting[8] 		March 5, 2001 May 31, 2001
Thomas E. White May 31, 2001 May 9, 2003
Les Brownlee
Acting 		May 10, 2003 November 18, 2004
Francis J. Harvey November 19, 2004 March 9, 2007
Pete Geren March 9, 2007 September 21, 2009
Barack Obama
(2009–2017)
John M. McHugh September 21, 2009 November 1, 2015
Eric Fanning
Acting 		November 3, 2015 January 11, 2016
Patrick Murphy
Acting 		January 11, 2016 May 17, 2016
Eric Fanning May 17, 2016 January 20, 2017
Robert Speer
Acting 		January 20, 2017 August 2, 2017 Donald Trump
(2017–2021)
Ryan D. McCarthy
Acting 		August 2, 2017 November 20, 2017
Mark Esper November 20, 2017
On leave: June 24, 2019 – July 15, 2019[13] 		July 23, 2019
Ryan D. McCarthy
Acting[13] 		June 24, 2019 July 15, 2019
Ryan D. McCarthy July 23, 2019 September 30, 2019
September 30, 2019 January 20, 2021
John E. Whitley
Acting 		January 20, 2021 May 28, 2021 Joe Biden
(2021–2025)
Christine Wormuth May 28, 2021 present

References

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  1. ^ Archived 2010-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "10 U.S. Code § 7013 - Secretary of the Army". Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  3. ^ a b 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. Archived from the original on December 14, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  4. ^ "Secretary of the Army | The United States Army". Secretary of the Army | The United States Army. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "Secretary of the Army". Archived from the original on September 21, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  6. ^ "10 U.S. Code § 7014 - Office of the Secretary of the Army". Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  7. ^ Bell, William Gardner. ""Intro - Secretaries of War & Secretaries of the Army"". Secretaries of War and Secretaries of the Army: Portraits & Biographical Sketches. Archived from the original on December 14, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Bell, William Gardner (1992). Secretaries of War and Secretaries of the Army: Portraits and Biographical Sketches. Washington, D.C.: United States Army Center of Military History.
  9. ^ Schmitt, Eric (August 28, 1993). "Acting Army Secretary, Accused Of Shoplifing, Is Placed on Leave". The New York Times. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  10. ^ Miller, Bill (September 22, 1993). "Acting Army Secretary Admits Shoplifting". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
  11. ^ The Daily Sentinel (Ohio/West Virginia), Acting Army Chief Ticketed for Shoplifting, August 29, 1993
  12. ^ U.S. Organization Chart Service, Department of Defense Fact Book, 2006, page 17
  13. ^ a b 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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