Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment
This vector image includes elements that have been taken or adapted from this fi · Public domain · source
Post	Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment
Department	United States Department of Defense
Style	The Honorable
Reports to	United States Secretary of Defense
Formation	2018
Inaugural	David A. Berteau

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment is a senior civilian official within the United States Department of Defense responsible for policy oversight of sustainment functions across the United States Armed Forces, including logistics, materiel readiness, installations, and energy resilience. The office connects strategic guidance from the Office of the Secretary of Defense with operational requirements from the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the United States Army, the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, and the United States Air Force. As a policy leader, the position interfaces with congressional committees such as the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services and the United States House Committee on Armed Services and with federal actors like the General Services Administration and the Defense Logistics Agency.

Overview and Responsibilities

The office develops sustainment policy that influences decisions by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, and the Secretary of the Air Force. Core responsibilities include the lifecycle management of weapon systems, depot maintenance policy, military construction priorities, energy assurance for installations, and oversight of supply chain resilience against threats from actors such as the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation. The position issues guidance affecting programs like the Defense Production Act, depot capacity under the National Defense Authorization Act, and materiel readiness metrics used by the Government Accountability Office.

History and Evolution

The sustainment portfolio evolved from predecessor roles embedded in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and traceable to organizational reforms after the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986. Changes were influenced by operational lessons from the Persian Gulf War, stability operations in Iraq War (2003–2011), and sustainment challenges highlighted during Operation Enduring Freedom. Reform initiatives in the 2000s and 2010s, involving actors like the Defense Science Board and the Rand Corporation, emphasized depot modernization, supply chain security, and public-private partnerships with companies such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Raytheon Technologies. The formal Assistant Secretary position was established to consolidate policy oversight following reorganizations that created the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment.

Organizational Structure and Officeholders

The office reports to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and coordinates with offices including the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment and the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation. Staffed by career civil servants, political appointees, and liaisons from the Defense Contract Management Agency, the office maintains policy divisions for depot maintenance, supply chain policy, facilities and infrastructure, and installation energy resilience. Prominent officeholders and senior leaders have worked with interagency partners such as the Department of Homeland Security and congressional staff from the Congressional Research Service. The role routinely engages with military educational institutions like the National Defense University and research centers such as the National Research Council.

Policies and Programs

Key policy initiatives include sustainment strategies for life-cycle management of platforms like the F-35 Lightning II, the M1 Abrams, and the Virginia-class submarine. Programs overseen involve depot and industrial base policy, calibration of readiness metrics in coordination with the Defense Logistics Agency, and implementation of acquisition-sustainment interoperability for systems developed by contractors including General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman. The office implements directives tied to statutes such as the Federal Acquisition Regulation and partners with agencies administering export controls like the Bureau of Industry and Security. Policy priorities often mirror strategic guidance from the National Security Strategy and defense reviews such as the National Defense Strategy.

Budget, Procurement, and Logistics Management

The Assistant Secretary influences sustainment portions of the Defense budget (United States) and participates in program objective memorandum planning with the Office of Management and Budget and Congressional Budget Office analyses. Procurement and logistics management activities include oversight of depot investment funding, repair and overhaul contracts, transportation coordination with the United States Transportation Command, and inventory management across the Defense Logistics Agency. Efforts to mitigate supply chain risk focus on critical minerals and semiconductor dependencies involving suppliers in regions such as Taiwan and South Korea. Audit and accountability interactions involve the Department of Defense Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office.

Interagency and International Coordination

Sustainment policy requires coordination with allies and partners including NATO, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan for logistics interoperability, prepositioning agreements, and host-nation support frameworks. The office engages in multinational forums like the NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency and bilateral initiatives addressing logistics corridors used in exercises such as Exercise Defender-Europe and RIMPAC. Interagency collaboration extends to the Department of State for security cooperation, the Department of Energy on installation energy resilience, and the Department of Commerce on industrial base and trade controls. Crisis response coordination has included joint efforts during pandemics with the Department of Health and Human Services and disaster relief operations with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Category:United States Department of Defense officials