The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and superv ...

. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirmed as Secretary of the Navy. By law, the Secretary of the Navy must be a civilian at least five years removed from active military service. The secretary is appointed by the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and requires confirmation by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

History

The position of Secretary of the Navy was created in 1798. It was a member of the president's Cabinet until 1949, when the Secretary of the Navy (and the secretaries of the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

and

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

) were by amendments to the

National Security Act of 1947 The National Security Act of 1947 (Act of Congress, Pub.L.]80-253 61 United States Statutes at Large, Stat.]495 enacted July 26, 1947) was a law enacting major restructuring of the Federal government of the United States, United States governmen ...

made subordinate to the United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense. From 2001 to 2019, proposals to rename the Department of the Navy to the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps, which would have also renamed the Secretary of the Navy to the Secretary of the Navy and Marine Corps, were introduced with wide support in the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

, but failed due to the opposition of Senator and retired U.S. Navy officer

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

Responsibilities

The Department of the Navy (DoN) consists of two

uniformed services Uniformed services is an abstract term that are generally bodies of people in employment of a state who wear a distinct uniform that differentiates them from the public and private sector. Their purpose is to foster the equality, security, saf ...

: the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

. The Secretary of the Navy is responsible for, and has statutory authority () to "conduct all the affairs of the Department of the Navy", i.e. as its chief executive officer, subject to the limits of the law, and the directions of the president and the secretary of defense. In effect, all authority within the Navy and Marine Corps, unless specifically exempted by law, is derivative of the authority vested in the Secretary of the Navy. Specifically enumerated responsibilities of the SECNAV in the aforementioned section are: recruiting, organizing, supplying, equipping, training, mobilizing, and demobilizing. The secretary also oversees the construction, outfitting, and repair of naval ships, equipment, and facilities. SECNAV is responsible for the formulation and implementation of policies and programs that are consistent with the national security policies and objectives established by the president or the secretary of defense. The Secretary of the Navy is a member of the

Defense Acquisition Board The Defense Acquisition Board (DAB) is the senior advisory board for defense acquisitions in the Department of Defense of the United States. The board is chaired by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and includes the V ...

(DAB), chaired by the

Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, or USD (A&S), is the Principal Staff Assistant (PSA) and advisor to the Secretary of Defense for all matters relating to acquisition and sustainment in the Department of Defense. ...

. Furthermore, the secretary has several statutory responsibilities under the

Uniform Code of Military Justice The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) is the foundation of the system of military justice of the armed forces of the United States. The UCMJ was established by the United States Congress in accordance with their constitutional authority ...

(UCMJ) with respect to the administration of the military justice system for the Navy & the Marine Corps, including the authority to convene general courts-martial and to commute sentences. The principal military advisers to the SECNAV are the two service chiefs of the naval services: for matters regarding the Navy the

chief of naval operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...

(CNO), and for matters regarding the Marine Corps the

commandant of the Marine Corps Commandant of the Marine Corps may refer to: * Commandant of the Marine Corps (Indonesia) * Commandant of the Netherlands Marine Corps * Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps * Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps * Commandant of th ...

(CMC). The CNO and the Commandant act as the principal executive agents of the SECNAV within their respective services to implement the orders of the secretary.

Navy Regulations

The

United States Navy Regulations United States Navy Regulations is the principal regulatory document of the Department of the Navy (not just the ''United States Navy''), endowed with the sanction of law, as to duty, responsibility, authority, distinctions and relationships of var ...

is the principal regulatory document of the Department of the Navy, and all changes to it must be approved by the Secretary of the Navy.

U.S. Coast Guard

Whenever the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

operates as a service within the Department of the Navy, the Secretary of the Navy has the same powers and duties with respect to the Coast Guard as the

secretary of homeland security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...

when the Coast Guard is not operating as a service in the Department of the Navy.

The Navy Secretariat

The Office of the Secretary of the Navy, also known within DoD as the ''Navy Secretariat'' or simply just as the ''Secretariat'' in a DoN setting, is the immediate headquarters staff that supports the secretary in discharging his duties. The principal officials of the Secretariat include the

Under Secretary of the Navy The under secretary of the navy is the second-highest ranking civilian official in the United States Department of the Navy. The under secretary reports to the secretary of the navy (SECNAV). Before the creation of the under secretary's office, t ...

(the secretary's principal civilian deputy), the assistant secretaries of the Navy (ASN), the general counsel of the Navy, the

judge advocate general of the Navy The judge advocate general of the Navy (JAG) is the highest-ranking uniformed lawyer in the United States Department of the Navy. The judge advocate general is the principal advisor to the United States Secretary of the Navy, secretary of the Nav ...

(JAG), the Naval inspector general (NIG), the chief of Legislative Affairs, and the chief of naval research. The Office of the Secretary of the Navy has sole responsibility within the Department of the Navy for acquisition, auditing, financial and information management, legislative affairs, and public affairs. Pursuant to SecNavInst 5090.5F, the Department of the Navy ''Environmental Programs Manual'', the Secretary of the Navy and chief of naval operations recognize a number of commands annually for achievements in such areas as

environmental quality Environmental quality is considered by scientists and environmentalists as the properties and attributes of the environment, generalized or on a small scale, as they affect human beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an e ...

, environmental cleanup, natural resources conservation,

cultural resources management In the broadest sense, cultural resource management (CRM) is the vocation and practice of managing heritage assets, and other cultural resources such as contemporary art. It incorporates Cultural Heritage Management which is concerned with traditi ...

, pollution prevention, and

recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. This concept often includes the recovery of energy from waste materials. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the propert ...

. The chief of naval operations and the commandant of the Marine Corps have their own separate staffs, the ''

Office of the Chief of Naval Operations The structure of the United States Navy consists of four main bodies: the Office of the Secretary of the Navy, the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, the operating forces (described below), and the Shore Establishment. Office of the Chief of ...

'' (also known by its acronym OPNAV) and ''

Headquarters Marine Corps The Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) is a headquarters staff within the Department of the Navy which includes the offices of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and various staff functions. The funct ...

''.

Secretaries of the Navy

Continental Congress

''(Post of Secretary of Marine created but remained vacant)''

Executive Department, 1798–1949

Military Department (Department of Defense), 1949–present

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:United States Secretary Of The Navy

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

*S *Secretary of the Navy