Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness


The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, or USD , is a high-ranking civilian position in the Office of the Secretary of Defense within the United States Department of Defense responsible for advising the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense on recruitment, career development, pay and benefits, and oversight of the state of military readiness. The Under Secretary is appointed from civilian life by the President and confirmed by the Senate to serve at the pleasure of the President.
Matthew Donovan is the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, confirmed by the United States Senate on 23 March 2020. Additionally, he exercises day-to-day supervision of the Department of Defense Education Activity and the Defense Commissary Agency.
The previous most recent Under Secretary to serve was Robert Wilkie, who served from 30 November 2017 to 30 July 2018.

Overview

The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness is the principal staff element for the Department of Defense for all human resources, human capital development, and personnel logistics matters. The USD has oversight of the Defense Commissary Agency, Department of Defense Education Activity, Defense Human Resources Activity, the Military Health System, and the Defense Travel Management Office. The USD is also responsible for training, health affairs, National Guard and Reserve affairs, personnel requirements for weapons support, and military and civilian family matters, subject to the authority of the Secretary of Defense. Through the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Personnel Policy, the United States Military Entrance Processing Command also reports to the Under Secretary.
With the rank of Under Secretary, the USD is a Level III position within the Executive Schedule. Since January 2010, the annual rate of pay for Level III is $165,300.

History

The position was first mandated by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1994, signed by President Clinton on 30 November 1993. Defense Directive 5124.2, passed 17 March 1994, officially established the position, incorporating the functions of the Assistant Secretary of Defense and authorizing authority over the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. Since the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 was signed on 5 October 1999, the Under Secretary has been responsible for establishing standards on deployment of units away from assigned duty stations, the length of time they may be away for a deployment away from assigned duty stations, and for establishing systems for reporting tracking deployments.
When created in 1993, the USD assumed authority primarily over three DoD offices: the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, and Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy. The ASD has since been abolished, its responsibilities assumed by other officials reporting to the USD.

Reporting officials

Officials reporting to the USD include:

Budget totals

The annual budget for the USD is contained in the Office of the Secretary of Defense's budget, under the Defense-Wide Operation and Maintenance account.

Budget features

No.PortraitNameTenureSecretary of Defense Served UnderPresident Served Under
1Edwin Dorn16 March 1994 – 7 July 1997William PerryBill Clinton
1Edwin Dorn16 March 1994 – 7 July 1997William CohenBill Clinton
2Rudy de Leon5 August 1997 – 31 March 2000William CohenBill Clinton
-Charles Cragin 31 March 2000 – 23 May 2000William CohenBill Clinton
3Bernard D. Rostker23 May 2000 – 19 January 2001William CohenBill Clinton
4David S. C. Chu1 June 2001 – 20 January 2009Donald RumsfeldGeorge W. Bush
4David S. C. Chu1 June 2001 – 20 January 2009Robert GatesGeorge W. Bush
-Gail H. McGinn 21 January 2009 – 8 February 2010Robert GatesBarack Obama
5Clifford Stanley9 February 2010 – 27 October 2011Robert GatesBarack Obama
5Clifford Stanley9 February 2010 – 27 October 2011Leon PanettaBarack Obama
-Jo Ann Rooney 27 October 2011 – 8 June 2012Leon PanettaBarack Obama
6Erin C. Conaton8 June 2012 – 31 December 2012Leon PanettaBarack Obama
7Jessica Wright1 January 2013 – 31 March 2015Leon PanettaBarack Obama
7Jessica Wright1 January 2013 – 31 March 2015Chuck HagelBarack Obama
7Jessica Wright1 January 2013 – 31 March 2015Ash CarterBarack Obama
-Brad Carson 2 April 2015 – April 2016Ash CarterBarack Obama
-Peter Levine April 2016 – January 2017Ash CarterBarack Obama
-Peter Levine April 2016 – January 2017Jim MattisDonald Trump
-Anthony Kurta January 2017 – 30 November 2017Jim MattisDonald Trump
8Robert Wilkie30 November 2017 – 30 July 2018Jim MattisDonald Trump
-James N. Stewart 22 October 2018 – 13 December 2019Jim MattisDonald Trump
-James N. Stewart 22 October 2018 – 13 December 2019Mark EsperDonald Trump
-Matthew Donovan 13 December 2019 - 2 March 2020Mark EsperDonald Trump
-Alexis Lasselle Ross 3 March 2020 - 23 March 2020Mark EsperDonald Trump
9Matthew Donovan23 March 2020 – PresentMark EsperDonald Trump

Principal Deputy

The Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness is the Under Secretary's chief staff assistant. PDUSD is delegated full power and authority to act for the USD and exercise the powers of the USD on any and all matters that the USD is authorized to act, except in those areas where delegation of the USD authority is otherwise restricted by higher authority or prohibited by law.
Established as the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense by the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2002 , the post took over the duties of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy, which was then abolished. The DUSD was re-designated Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense , or PDUSD in July 2003 by DoD Directive 5124.8. As of 2012, the position again holds the rank of Principal Deputy Under Secretary.