Joint Capability Technology Demonstration
| Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment USD(A&S) |
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|---|---|
Flag of an Under Secretary of Defense
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| Office of the Secretary of Defense | |
| Style | Madam Secretary The Honorable (formal address in writing) |
| Reports to |
Secretary of Defense Deputy Secretary of Defense |
| Appointer | The President with the advice and consent of the Senate |
| Term length | No fixed term |
| Inaugural holder | Richard P. Godwin |
| Formation | 1986 |
| Succession | 5th in SecDef succession |
| Deputy | The Principal Deputy Under Secretary |
| Salary | Level II of the Executive Schedule |
| Website | www.acq.osd.mil |
The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, or USD(A&S), is a senior civilian official in the Office of the Secretary of Defense within the Department of Defense. USD(AT&L) is the principal staff assistant and advisor to the Secretary of Defense and the Deputy Secretary of Defense for all matters concerning Departmental acquisitions and the general management of the Department as a whole.
The Under Secretary is appointed from civilian life by the President with the consent of the Senate to serve at the pleasure of the President. Ellen Lord assumed the duties of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics on August 7, 2017.
From 1997 until February 1, 2018, the position was called the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics or USD(AT&L). On February 1, 2018, the research and engineering functions office were split into the new Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (R&E), and USD(AT&L) was renamed USD(A&S).
The Office is the principal staff element for the Department of Defense for acquisitions, advanced technology, and logistics. As the Department's chief administrative officer, the Under Secretary oversees installation management, military construction, occupational health management, utilities and energy management; business management modernization, document services, and nuclear, chemical, and biological defense programs.
Despite holding the rank of Under Secretary, USD(AT&L) is a Level II position within the Executive Schedule. All other Under Secretaries within the Department are Level III positions. Since January 2010, the annual rate of pay for Level II is $179,700.
This position was established by Act of Congress (P.L. 99-348) in 1986 as the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, and implemented with the issuance of Department of Defense Directive 5134.1 in February 1987. This position replaced the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, which had been established in 1977. The Director, Defense Research and Engineering became a separate, less powerful position in the Pentagon, which reports up to the USD(AT&L). The title changed to Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology in the National Defense Authorization Act for 1994 (P.L. 103-160, passed 30 November 1993).
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