United States Department of Defense

Department of Defense

Seal of the Department of Defense
Established:	July 26, 1947
Activated:	September 18, 1947
Renamed:	August 10, 1949
Secretary:	Donald H. Rumsfeld
Deputy Secretary:	Gordon R. England
Budget:	$419.3 billion (2006 official)
Employees:	700,000 civilian 2.3 million military (2004)

The United States Department of Defense, abbreviated as DoD or DOD and usually called the Defense Department, is a civilian Cabinet organization of the United States government. The Department of Defense controls the U.S. military and is headquartered at The Pentagon. It is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is currently Donald Rumsfeld. The DOD is also the largest employer in the United States.

Organization

2005 DoD Structure

* Office of the Secretary of Defense
** Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee
** Office of Net Assessment
** Office of Inspector General
*** Defense Criminal Investigative Service
*Military Departments
** Department of the Army including the U.S. Army
** Department of the Navy including the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps
** Department of the Air Force including the U.S. Air Force
* Joint Chiefs of Staff
** United States Naval Observatory
* Unified Combatant Commands
** Central Command (CENTCOM)
** European Command (EUCOM)
** Joint Forces Command (JFCOM)
** Northern Command (NORTHCOM)
** Pacific Command (PACOM)
** Southern Command (SOUTHCOM)
** Special Operations Command (SOCOM)
** Strategic Command (STRATCOM)
** Transportation Command (TRANSCOM)
* Defense Agencies
** Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
** Defense Commissary Agency
** Defense Contract Audit Agency
** Defense Contract Management Agency
** Defense Finance and Accounting Service
** Defense Information Systems Agency
** Defense Intelligence Agency
** Defense Legal Services Agency
** Defense Logistics Agency
** Defense Security Cooperation Agency
** Defense Security Service
** Defense Threat Reduction Agency
** Missile Defense Agency
** National Security Agency
** National Reconnaissance Office
** National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
** Pentagon Force Protection Agency
* Department of Defense Field Activities
** American Forces Information Service
** Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
** Department of Defense Education Activity
*** Department of Defense Dependents Schools
** DoD Human Resources Activity
** Office of Economic Adjustment
** Tricare Management Activity
** Washington Headquarters Services

In 2003, the National Communications System was moved to the United States Department of Homeland Security.

See also

* Military badges of the United States Department of Defense
* The Berry Amendment, a U.S.C law that requires most goods used by the armed forces to be produced domestically.
* US Senate Report on chemical weapons

Related legislation

* 1947 - National Security Act of 1947
* 1958 - Department of Defense Reorganization Act PL 85-899
* 1963 - Department of Defense Appropriations Act PL 88-149
* 1963 - Military Construction Authorization Act PL 88-174
* 1967 - Supplemental Defense Appropriations Act PL 90-8
* 1984 - Department of Defense Authorization Act PL 98-525
* 1986 - Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 or Department of Defense Reorganization Act PL 99-433
* 1996 - Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act PL 104-132

External links

*United States DOD website
*Read Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding the Department of Defense
*U.S. Department of Defense Profile: Making the Tail Smaller and the Tooth Stronger
*Entire Collection of DoD Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Reading Room