Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment

Summary

The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment (ASD(EI&E)), concurrently the Chief Sustainability Officer, and formerly known as the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment (DUSD(I&E)), provides management and oversight of military installations worldwide and manages environmental, safety, and occupational health programs for the Department of Defense (DoD). DoD's installations cover some 29,000,000 acres (120,000 km2), with 539,000 buildings and structures valued at more than $700 billion. The responsibilities of the ASD(EI&E) include the development of installation capabilities, programs, and budgets; installation-energy programs and policy; base realignment and closure; privatization of military housing and utilities; and integration of environmental needs into the weapons acquisition process. The ASD(EI&E) is also responsible for environmental management, safety and occupational health; environmental restoration at active and closing bases; conservation of natural and cultural resources; pollution prevention; environmental research and technology; fire protection; and explosives safety.[1] The ASD(EI&E) reports to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, and is a part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment
Seal of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment
Incumbent
Brendan Owens
since January 26, 2023
Office of the Secretary of Defense
StyleThe Honorable
(formal address in writing)
Reports toUnder Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment
AppointerThe President
with the advice and consent of the Senate
Term lengthNo fixed term
FormationFebruary 10, 2022

History edit

Responsibility over installations and environmental affairs at the Defense Department was spread out across a variety of positions over time. Oversight for installations has been lumped together in the past with manpower, acquisition, and logistics functions (see, for example, the history of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Logistics and Materiel Readiness and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy). For a brief period in the mid-1990s, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Economic Security had oversight for installations and the base realignment and closure (BRAC) program, in addition to DoD policy in the areas of industrial affairs, dual-use technology, international cooperation programs, and community economic adjustment.[2] On April 5, 1996, the DoD nullified Defense Directive 5134.7 (signed August 21, 1995), thereby abolishing the ASD(Economic Security) while noting that this position has served the "purpose for which it was intended and is no longer required."[3] Responsibility for installations then migrated to the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations.

Oversight for environmental affairs was linked together with health affairs for many years (see, for example, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs). In 2001, the responsibilities for installation and environment functions were merged into a single office. This office is not one of the five Principal Deputy Under Secretaries of Defense authorized by law, as articulated in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2010.[4] Thus, DoD is statutorily obligated to re-designate this office in the near future, similar to the recent re-designation of the Deputy Under Secretaries of Defense within the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness.

As part of a reorganization on February 1, 2018, the ASD(EI&E) was abolished and combined with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Logistics and Materiel Readiness to form a new Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment.[5][6] The ASD(EI&E) was reestablished on February 10, 2022.[7]

Officeholders edit

The table below includes both the various titles of this post over time, as well as all the holders of those offices.

Deputy Under Secretaries of Defense (Installations and Environment)[3]
Name Tenure SecDef(s) served under President(s) served under
Responsibility for Installations
Director of Installations
Frank Creedon August 25, 1952 - June 29, 1953 Robert A. Lovett
Charles E. Wilson
Harry Truman
Dwight Eisenhower
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Properties and Installations)
Franklin G. Floete August 3, 1953 - March 4, 1956 Charles E. Wilson Dwight Eisenhower
Floyd S. Bryant May 2, 1956 - January 20, 1961 Charles E. Wilson
Neil H. McElroy
Thomas S. Gates
Dwight Eisenhower
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Installations and Logistics)
Thomas D. Morris January 29, 1961 - December 11, 1964 Robert S. McNamara John F. Kennedy
Lyndon Johnson
Paul R. Ignatius December 23, 1964 - August 31, 1967 Robert S. McNamara Lyndon Johnson
Thomas D. Morris September 1, 1967 - February 1, 1969 Robert S. McNamara
Clark M. Clifford
Lyndon Johnson
Barry J. Shillito February 1, 1969 - February 1, 1973 Melvin R. Laird Richard Nixon
Arthur I. Mendolia June 21, 1973 - March 31, 1975 James R. Schlesinger Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
John J. Bennett (Acting) April 1, 1975 - February 9, 1976 James R. Schlesinger
Donald H. Rumsfeld
Gerald Ford
Frank A. Shrontz February 10, 1976 - January 19, 1977 Donald H. Rumsfeld Gerald Ford
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Installations, and Logistics)
Lawrence J. Korb January 12, 1984 - July 5, 1985 Caspar W. Weinberger Ronald Reagan
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Development and Support)
James P. Wade August 6, 1984 - July 5, 1985 Caspar W. Weinberger Ronald Reagan
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Acquisition and Logistics)
James P. Wade July 5, 1985 - November 3, 1986 Caspar W. Weinberger Ronald Reagan
Robert B. Costello March 13, 1987 - April 15, 1987 Caspar W. Weinberger Ronald Reagan
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Production and Logistics)
Robert B. Costello April 15, 1987 - December 17, 1987 Caspar W. Weinberger
Frank C. Carlucci III
Ronald Reagan
Jack Katzen March 28, 1988 - January 8, 1990 Frank C. Carlucci III
William H. Taft IV (Acting)
Richard B. Cheney
Ronald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
Colin R. McMillan March 5, 1990 - December 11, 1992 Richard B. Cheney George H. W. Bush
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Economic Security)
Joshua Gotbaum May 20, 1994 - December 25, 1995 William J. Perry Bill Clinton
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations)
Randall A. Yim 1999[8] - 2001 William S. Cohen Bill Clinton
Responsibility for Environment
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health and Environment)
Dr. Louis M. Rousselot July 22, 1970 - July 1, 1971 Melvin R. Laird Richard Nixon
Dr. Richard S. Wilbur July 27, 1971 - September 1, 1973 Melvin R. Laird
Elliot L. Richardson
James R. Schlesinger
Richard Nixon
Dr. James R. Cowan February 19, 1974 - March 1, 1976 James R. Schlesinger
Donald H. Rumsfeld
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Vernon McKenzie (Acting) March 2, 1976 - March 8, 1976 Donald H. Rumsfeld Gerald Ford
Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Environmental Security
Sherri W. Goodman 1993 - 2001 Leslie Aspin Jr.
William J. Perry
William S. Cohen
Bill Clinton
Merged Responsibilities
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations and Environment)
Raymond F. DuBois April 2001 - October 31, 2004 Donald H. Rumsfeld George W. Bush
Philip W. Grone November 1, 2004[9] - February 2008 Donald H. Rumsfeld
Robert M. Gates
George W. Bush
Wayne Arny February 2008 - July 2009 Robert M. Gates George W. Bush
Barack Obama
Dr. Dorothy Robyn July 15, 2009[10] - September 2012[11] Robert M. Gates
Leon Panetta
Barack Obama
John Conger (Acting) September 2012[12] - December 2014 Leon Panetta
Chuck Hagel
Barack Obama
Merged Responsibilities
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Energy, Installations and Environment)
John Conger (Performing the Duties of)[13] December 2014[14] - December 2015[15] Chuck Hagel
Ashton Carter
Barack Obama
Pete Potochney (Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment)[16] December 2015 - August 1, 2017[17] Ashton Carter
James Mattis
Barack Obama
Donald Trump
Lucian Niemeyer August 2, 2017 - July 2018[18] James Mattis Donald Trump
Merged Responsibilities
Subsumed under Assistant Secretary of Defense (Sustainment) August 2018 - February 2022[7]
Established Responsibilities
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Energy, Installations, and Environment)[7]
Paul D. Cramer (Performing the Duties of)[19] February 10, 2022 – January 26, 2023 Lloyd Austin Joe Biden
Brendan Owens January 26, 2023 – present Lloyd Austin Joe Biden

References edit

  1. ^ "DUSD (I&E) - DUSD (I&E) Biography". Acq.osd.mil. April 15, 2011. Archived from the original on December 7, 2007. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  2. ^ [1] Archived May 31, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b "Department of Defense Key Officials" (PDF). Historical Office, OSD. 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 21, 2011. Retrieved February 1, 2011.
  4. ^ Title IX, Subtitle A, Section 906, Part b, "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 3, 2011. Retrieved February 14, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ Mehta, Aaron (February 2, 2018). "The Pentagon's acquisition office is gone. Here's what the next 120 days bring". Defense News. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  6. ^ "Report to Congress: Restructuring the Department of Defense Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Organization and Chief Management Officer Organization" (PDF). August 1, 2017. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  7. ^ a b c "Statement of Mr. Paul Cramer Performing the Duties of Assistant Secretary of Defense (Energy, Installations & Environment) Before the House Committee on Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness Department of Defense Energy, Installations & Environment Programs" (PDF). March 16, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  8. ^ "Speech". Defense.gov. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  9. ^ Wynne, Michael W. (2005). "Subject: Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment". Defense AT&L.
  10. ^ "News Release: Senior Executive Service Appointments and Reassignments". Defense.gov. March 12, 2009. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
  11. ^ "Dorothy Robyn is GSA's pick as Public Buildings Service commissioner". washingtonpost.com. September 4, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  12. ^ "DUSD(I&E) Biography". www.acq.osd.mil. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on December 7, 2007. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  13. ^ "New Year Ushers in New Installations, Energy Organization at Pentagon". www.defensecommunities.org/. January 11, 2015. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  14. ^ "I&E Featured News ANNOUNCEMENT". www.acq.osd.mil. December 20, 2014. Archived from the original on March 8, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  15. ^ "Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)". www.defense.gov/. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  16. ^ "Mr. Peter Potochney Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment". Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "Trump picks Army official for sustainment job; intel nominee coming soon". www.defensenews.com/. February 25, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  18. ^ "New Navy secretary, 7 other DoD officials confirmed by Senate". DefenseNews.com/. August 1, 2017. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
  19. ^ "Paul D. Cramer Performing the Duties of Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and Performing the Duties of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment". Retrieved September 27, 2022.