Title 10, Armed ForcesRelease 119-102
§8016 Assistant Secretaries of the Navy
Title 10 › Subtitle C — Navy and Marine Corps › PART I — ORGANIZATION › CHAPTER 803 — DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY › § 8016
Summary
Creates four Assistant Secretaries of the Navy who must be civilians appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. They must carry out the duties the Secretary of the Navy assigns. One assistant oversees manpower and reserve matters. One is the financial manager and must come from people with strong budget, finance, or audit experience; this person runs the Navy’s comptroller and all financial management work and advises the Secretary. One handles research, development, acquisition, and sustainment and has a Principal Military Deputy who is an active-duty Navy or Marine Corps officer with acquisition experience; that deputy is a critical acquisition position under 10 U.S.C. 1731 and may serve as Acting Assistant Secretary for up to one year if the job is vacant. The fourth oversees energy, installations, and environmental matters.
Full Legal Text
Title 10, §8016
Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)There are four Assistant Secretaries of the Navy. They shall be appointed from civilian life by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
(b)(1)The Assistant Secretaries shall perform such duties and exercise such powers as the Secretary of the Navy may prescribe.
(2)One of the Assistant Secretaries shall be the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. He shall have as his principal duty the overall supervision of manpower and reserve component affairs of the Department of the Navy.
(3)(A)One of the Assistant Secretaries shall be the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management.
(B)The Assistant Secretary shall be appointed from among persons who have significant budget, financial management, or audit experience in complex organizations.
(C)The principal responsibility of the Assistant Secretary shall be the exercise of the comptroller functions of the Department of the Navy, including financial management functions. The Assistant Secretary shall be responsible for all financial management activities and operations of the Department of the Navy and shall advise the Secretary of the Navy on financial management.
(4)(A)One of the Assistant Secretaries shall be the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition. The principal duty of the Assistant Secretary shall be the overall supervision of research, development, acquisition, and sustainment (including maintenance) matters of the Department of the Navy.
(B)The Assistant Secretary shall have a Principal Military Deputy, who shall be an officer of the Navy or the Marine Corps on active duty. The Principal Military Deputy shall be appointed from among officers who have significant experience in the areas of acquisition and program management. The position of Principal Military Deputy shall be designated as a critical acquisition position under section 1731 of this title. In the event of a vacancy in the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition, the Principal Military Deputy may serve as Acting Assistant Secretary for a period of not more than one year.
(5)(A)One of the Assistant Secretaries shall be the Assistant Secretary for Energy, Installations, and Environment.
(B)The principal duty of the Assistant Secretary for Energy, Installations, and Environment shall be the overall supervision of energy, installation, and environment matters for the Department of the Navy.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in section 5034 of this title prior to enactment of Pub. L. 99–433. A prior section 8016 was renumbered section 9016 of this title.
Amendments
2019—Subsec. (b)(4)(B). Pub. L. 116–92, § 861(j)(15), substituted “under section 1731 of this title” for “under section 1733 of this title”. Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 116–92, § 911(b), added par. (5). 2018—Pub. L. 115–232, § 807(a)(1), renumbered section 5016 of this title as this section. Subsec. (b)(4)(A). Pub. L. 115–232, § 915, substituted “acquisition, and sustainment (including maintenance) matters” for “and acquisition matters”. 2017—Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 115–91 designated first sentence as subpar. (A), designated second and third sentences as subpar. (C) and, in subpar. (C), substituted “The principal responsibility of the Assistant Secretary shall be” for “The Assistant Secretary shall have as his principal responsibility”, and added subpar. (B). 2016—Subsec. (b)(4)(B). Pub. L. 114–328, § 802(b), inserted at end “In the event of a vacancy in the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition, the Principal Military Deputy may serve as Acting Assistant Secretary for a period of not more than one year.” Pub. L. 114–328, § 502(t), substituted “an officer of the Navy or the Marine Corps” for “a vice admiral of the Navy or a lieutenant general of the Marine Corps”. 2008—Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 110–181 added par. (4). 1988—Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 100–456 added par. (3).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2018 AmendmentAmendment by section 807(a)(1) of Pub. L. 115–232 effective Feb. 1, 2019, with provision for the coordination of
Amendments
and special rule for certain redesignations, see section 800 of Pub. L. 115–232, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.
Effective Date
of 2017 AmendmentFor applicability of appointment qualifications imposed by section 921 of Pub. L. 115–91 to certain appointments made on or after Dec. 12, 2017, see section 921(d) of Pub. L. 115–91, set out as a note under section 7016 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1988 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 100–456 effective Jan. 20, 1989, see section 702(e)(1) of Pub. L. 100–456, set out as a note under section 7016 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 8016
Title 10, Armed Forces
Last Updated
Aug 21, 2026
Release point: 119-102