Title 10Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§12306 Standby Reserve

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle E— - Reserve Components › Part PART II— - PERSONNEL GENERALLY › Chapter CHAPTER 1209— - ACTIVE DUTY › § 12306

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Standby Reserve units and members can only be called to active duty under section 12301, but there are extra limits during an emergency. Units that are set up to serve together cannot be ordered out unless the Secretary in charge finds there are not enough of the needed kinds of Ready Reserve units that are ready and available, and if a military department Secretary makes that decision the Secretary of Defense must approve. Individual Standby Reserve members cannot be ordered without their consent unless the Secretary (with Secretary of Defense approval for military department decisions) finds there are not enough qualified Ready Reserve members in the needed category who are ready and available.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §12306

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Units and members in the Standby Reserve may be ordered to active duty only as provided in section 12301 of this title, but subject to the limitations in subsection (b).
(b)In time of emergency—
(1)no unit in the Standby Reserve organized to serve as a unit or any member thereof may be ordered to active duty under section 12301(a) of this title, unless the Secretary concerned, with the approval of the Secretary of Defense in the case of a Secretary of a military department, determines that there are not enough of the required kinds of units in the Ready Reserve that are readily available; and
(2)notwithstanding section 12301(a) of this title, no other member in the Standby Reserve may be ordered to active duty as an individual under such section without his consent, unless the Secretary concerned, with the approval of the Secretary of Defense in the case of a Secretary of a military department, determines that there are not enough qualified members in the Ready Reserve in the required category who are readily available.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

1956 Act Revised sectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 674(a) 674(b)50:926(a) (less 1st 28 words).50:926(b).July 9, 1952, ch. 608, § 206 (less 1st 28 words of (a)), 66 Stat. 483. In subsection (b), the words “to serve” are substituted for the words “for the purpose of serving”. The words “there are not enough * * * that are” are substituted for the words “adequate numbers of * * * are not”. The words “(other than for training)” are inserted, since the words “active duty” were defined in the source statute cited above to exclude “active duty for training”. 1962 ActThe change is made to conform section 674(a) more closely to the source law for that section, section 206(a) of the Armed Forces Reserve Act of 1952 (66 Stat. 483). section 206(a) of that Act defined the Standby Reserve in terms of units and members of the reserve components according to their liability to be ordered to active duty. It did not provide authority to order units and members of the Standby Reserve to active duty. This authority was provided by section 233(a) of the Armed Forces Reserve Act of 1952 (66 Stat. 489), which is restated in section 672(a) of title 10. Since the present language of section 674(a) may be interpreted to provide independent authority to order units and members of the Standby Reserve to active duty, it is revised to make clear that this is not the case and that section 672 is the authority for that action.

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2004—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 108–375, § 514(d)(1), substituted “active duty only as provided in section 12301 of this title, but subject to the limitations in subsection (b)” for “active duty (other than for training) only as provided in section 12301 of this title”. Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 108–375, § 514(d)(2)(A), substituted “under section 12301(a) of this title” for “(other than for training)”. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 108–375, § 514(d)(2)(B), substituted “notwithstanding section 12301(a) of this title, no other member in the Standby Reserve may be ordered to active duty as an individual under such section without his consent” for “no other member in the Standby Reserve may be ordered to active duty (other than for training) as an individual without his consent”. 1994—Pub. L. 103–337, § 1662(e)(2), renumbered section 674 of this title as this section. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–337, § 1675(c)(4), substituted “12301” for “672”. 1962—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 87–651 substituted “only as provided in section 672 of this title” for “only in time of war, of national emergency declared by Congress, or when otherwise authorized by law”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1994 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 103–337 effective Dec. 1, 1994, except as otherwise provided, see section 1691 of Pub. L. 103–337, set out as an

Effective Date

note under section 10001 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 12306

Title 10Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73