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Updated January 14, 2025
Defense Primer: Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and
Security
The Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and
Security (USD(I&S)) is a civilian official, appointed by the
President and confirmed by the Senate, who reports directly
to the Secretary of Defense. The USD(I&S) is the Principal
Staff Assistant and advisor to the Secretary and Deputy
Secretary of Defense on intelligence, counterintelligence
(CI), security, sensitive activities, and other intelligence-
related matters. On behalf of the Secretary, the USD(I&S)
also exercises authority, direction, and control over
Department of Defense (DOD) intelligence and security
policy, intelligence organization, and intelligence support to
military decision-makers and warfighters.
Congress redesignated the position of Under Secretary of
Defense for Intelligence (USD(I)) as the Under Secretary of
Defense for Intelligence and Security (USD(I&S)) in the
National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal
Year 2020 (Section 1621 of P.L. 116-92). This change
increased the emphasis on the importance and scope of the
USD(I&S)'s security responsibilities, which include the
responsibility for conducting most of the federal
government's background investigations to determine
eligibility for access to classified information (consistent
with Executive Order 13869) P.L. 116-92.
As the head of the defense intelligence and security
enterprise, the USD(I&S) has responsibility for a significant
portion of the personnel and funding supporting the
Intelligence Community (IC) overall. The USD(I&S) and
staff, however, are not statutory elements of the IC. Title 50
U.S. Code §3003(4) lists the 18 organizational elements of
the IC, two of which are independent-the Office of the
Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and Central
Intelligence Agency-and 16 of which are components of
six separate departments of the federal government. The
nine IC elements within DOD comprise the defense
intelligence and security enterprise overseen by the
USD(I&S). They include the Defense Intelligence Agency
(DIA), National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA),
National Security Agency (NSA), National Reconnaissance
Office (NRO), and the intelligence components of the
Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, and Space Force.
These elements, in turn, provide the Joint Staff and
Combatant Commands with the personnel and expertise for
their component joint intelligence organizations.
r . r
Origin of the USDQS) Position
Leadership of intelligence-related functions within the
Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) has been
realigned multiple times over the course of DOD's history.
The most recent development came when Congress
established the USD(I) position in the aftermath of the
September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
DOD requested the change, asserting that in exercising
delegated oversight over intelligence, CI, and security
functions, the position would provide the Secretary of
Defense with the flexibility ... require[d] to respond to
heightened demands on the [DOD] to support the
President's efforts to prevent and respond to acts of
terrorism against the United States. The legislative
language establishing the position of USD(I) was included
under Section 901 of the National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (P.L. 107-314), which was
codified as Section 137 of Title 10, United States Code.
Under Secretaries of Defense (I&S)
* Stephen A. Cambone (March 2003-December 2006)
* James R. Clapper (April 2007-August 20 10)
* Michael G. Vickers (March 2011-April 2015)
* Marcel Lettre (December 2015-January 2017)
* Todd Lowery (acting) (January 2017-June 2017)
* Kari Bingen (acting) (June 2017-December 2017)
* Joseph D. Kernan (December 2017-November 2020)
* Ezra Cohen-Watnick (acting) (November 2020-January
2021)
* David M. Taylor (acting) (January 2021-June 2021)
* Ronald S. Moultrie (June, 2021-February 2024)
* Milancy D. Harris (acting) (March 2024-present)
Origin of Dua-Hatted Role for USD(&S)
In May 2007, the Secretary of Defense and the Director of
National Intelligence (DNI) signed a Memorandum of
Agreement (MOA) to establish a dual role for the USD(I).
In a news release announcing the issuance of the MOA,
then-USD(I) James Clapper indicated that the creation of a
Director of Defense Intelligence (DDI) position was
intended to strengthen the relationship between the DNI
and the DOD ... [and] to facilitate staff interaction and
promote synchronization. Under the dual-hatting
arrangement, the incumbent within OSD serves as the
USD(I&S), and within the ODNI as the DDI. In the role of
DDI, the USD(I&S) reports directly to the DNI as principal
advisor on defense intelligence matters.
The DNI and the USD(I&S) together coordinate a range of
interagency activities designed to facilitate the integration
of national- and tactical-level intelligence activities. The
USD(I&S) coordinates and aligns defense intelligence with
IC programs and priorities, and addresses strategic, tactical,
or operational requirements supporting military strategy and
operations. The USD(I&S) and staff, therefore, provide
strategic direction and oversight of the defense products and
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