Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Flag of the Vice Chairman of the JCS
Incumbent General Paul J. Selva, USAF since July 31, 2015
U.S. Department of Defense
Member of	Defense Acquisition Board Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Requirements Oversight Council
Reports to	The President Secretary of Defense Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Seat	The Pentagon, Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
Appointer	The President with Senate advice and consent
Term length	2 years Renewable
Constituting instrument	10 U.S.C. § 154
Precursor	None
Formation	February 6, 1987
First holder	Robert T. Herres
Deputy	Director of the Joint Staff
Website	Official Website

The Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VJCS) is, by U.S. law, the second highest-ranking military officer in the United States Armed Forces ranking just below the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The Vice Chairman outranks all respective heads of each service branch, with the exception of the Chairman, but does not have operational command authority over their service branches. The Goldwater–Nichols Act of 1986 created the position of VJCS to assist the Chairman in exercising his duties. In the absence of the Chairman, the Vice Chairman presides over the meetings of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and all other duties prescribed under 10 U.S.C. § 153 and may also perform other duties that the President, the Chairman, or the Secretary of Defense prescribes.

Although the office of Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is considered to be very important and highly prestigious, neither the Vice Chairman nor the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a body have any command authority over combatant forces. The chain of command runs from the President to the Secretary of Defense directly to the commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands. The Vice Chairman is nominated by the President for appointment and must be confirmed via majority vote by the Senate. The Chairman and Vice Chairman may not be members of the same armed force service branch. However, the President may waive that restriction for a limited period of time in order to provide for the orderly transition of officers appointed to serve in those positions. The Vice Chairman serves a two-year term of office at the pleasure of the President, but can be reappointed to serve two additional terms for a total of six years. In case of times of war or national emergency, there is no limit to how many times an officer can be reappointed to serve as Vice Chairman. Historically, the Vice Chairman has served two terms. By statute, the Vice Chairman is appointed as a four-star general or admiral.