The following observations can be drawn from the emergence of
various functional areas in OSD:

1. the initial functional areas (1947-1949) enabled the Secretary
to administer his office, to interact with the external domestic en-
vironment, and to exercise some financial control.

2. the functional areas added in 1953 primarily added functional
resource areas, but also provided staff support for interacting with
the international environment.

3. additions since 1953 have added three, more specialized, func-
tional resource areas (atomic energy, intelligence, and telecom-
munications); however, most of the additions have been to strength-
en the Secretary's policy, program review, and oversight responsi-
bilities.

b. Shifts in OSD Functional Emphasis

Shifts in functional emphasis in OSD over time are difficult to
evaluate. The history of personnel strengths of various functional
offices would be a strong indicator of such shifts. However, the con-
version of certain activities from OSD offices, such as the Defense
Advanced Research Projects Agency and various administrative of-
fices, to Defense Agencies and DoD Field Activities makes such
analyses difficult.

Table 3-3 provides a history of OSD personnel assigned to six
broad functional categories. (It should be noted that there are some
inconsistencies between the OSD personnel totals in Table 3-3 and
Table 3-2). This table shows that:

• OSD has placed increased emphasis on financial control and
program review, international security affairs and policy, and
research and engineering in that order of degree; and

• OSD has placed less emphasis on manpower, installations, and
logistics and considerably less emphasis on administrative,
legal, and public affairs functions.

a/ Includes offices with the following functions:

research and engineering (including Advanced Research Projects Agency and
Weapons Systems Evaluation Group), atomic energy, intelligence, telecommunications, command, and control, small business,
and operational test and evaluation.

b/ Includes comptroller and systems analysis/program analysis and evaluation.

c/ Includes installations and logistics, manpower, health and environment/health affairs, and Reserve affairs.

d/ Includes administration, general counsel, legislative affairs, public affairs, special staff assistants, special programs,
administrative support group, miscellaneous activities, intelligence oversight, and executive secretariat.

e/ Includes international security affairs, U.S. Mission to NATO, policy, and net assessment.

5. Summary of Key Organizational Trends

For some of the areas presented in this section, the trends are clear and obvious. In others, the data are not precise, or there were changes which make useful analyses difficult. Accordingly, it is appropriate to summarize what can be concluded with some degree of confidence about organizational trends in OSD.

• While the personnel strength of OSD has fluctuated considerably since 1950, the OSD staff was slightly smaller in 1983 than in 1950.

• Certain activities once performed by OSD are now accomplished in organizations subordinate to OSD: the Defense Agencies and DoD Field Activities.

• The most significant organization trend is the creation of 15 Defense Agencies and 8 DoD Field Activities which now have combined personnel strengths of about 86,000.

• The Defense Agencies and DoD Field Activities represent a major effort to integrate common supply and service functions within the Department of Defense.

• Since 1970, there has been little change in the relative number of political appointees in OSD.

• Since as early as 1959, the hierarchical structure of OSD has been such that many officials report directly to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense.

• This has resulted in persistent span of control problems for the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense.

• Since its creation, OSD has been organized exclusively on a functional basis.

• The number of functional areas addressed by the OSD staff has steadily increased to a total of 20.

• Beginning in 1965, certain functions have been assumed by the OSD staff which seek to strengthen the Secretary of Defense's policy, program review, and oversight responsibilities.

• In particular, the emergence of the program analysis (1965), net assessments (1971), and policy (1977) functions demonstrates a trend toward staff capabilities that had a broader perspective than the narrow, functional, specialist orientation that had previously been the exclusive focus within OSD.

C. CURRENT ORGANIZATION OF OSD AND SUBORDINATE OFFICES

1. Office of the Secretary of Defense

The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) is the principal staff element of the Secretary in the exercise of policy development, planning resource management, fiscal, and program evaluation responsibilities. OSD includes the immediate offices of the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, Assistant Secretaries of Defense, General Counsel, Assistants to the Secretary of Defense, and such other staff offices as the Secretary establishes to assist in carrying out his responsibilities.

Chart 3-1 presents the current organization and primary offices of OSD. The responsibilities of these offices are briefly described below.

a. The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy is the principal staff assistant to the Secretary of Defense for policy matters relating to international security policy and political military affairs.

b. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Affairs) provides advice and recommends policies, formulates programs, develops plans, and issues guidance to DoD components regarding political-military activities related to international affairs, excluding NATO, other European countries and the USSR. He exercises oversight over DoD activities relating to the Law of the Sea. In addition, the Assistant Secretary supervises the areas of security assistance (i.e., Foreign Military Sales Program and Military Assistance Program), Military Assistance Advisory Groups and Missions, and the negotiation and monitoring of agreements with foreign governments, excluding NATO, other European countries, and the USSR.

c. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Policy) serves as the focal point for long and mid-range policy planning on strategic international security matters, with responsibility for developing and recommending policy positions and coordinating all matters concerning disarmament, arms control, and East-West security negotiations. The Assistant Secretary formulates policy relating to strategic offensive and defensive forces, theater nuclear matters and capabilities, and the relationship between strategic and theater force planning and budgets. His responsibilities also include oversight of DoD activities related to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and East-West economic policy, including East-West trade, technology transfer, and the defense industrial mobilization base.

d. The Director of Net Assessment prepares net assessments for the Secretary of Defense.

e. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Force Management and Personnel) is responsible for the following functional areas: Total Force management, military and civilian manpower, military and civilian personnel matters, manpower requirements for weapons support, education and training, and equal opportunity.

f. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Acquisition and Logistics) is responsible for management of DoD acquisition, logistics, installations, associated support functions, and other related matters. He also serves as the DoD Acquisition Executive.

g. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) is responsible for Department of Defense health and sanitation matters, which include the care and treatment of patients, preventive medicine, clinical investigations, hospitals and related health facilities, medical material, health promotion, drug and alcohol abuse control, and the recruiting, education and training of health personnel.

h. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs) is responsible for National Guard and Reserve affairs, including facilities and construction, logistics, training, mobilization readiness and other related aspects.

i. The Director, Program Analysis and Evaluation formulates the force planning, fiscal, programming, and policy guidance upon which DoD force planning and program projections are to be based. The staff analyzes and evaluates military forces, weapons systems, and equipment in relation to projected threats, U.S. objectives, resource constraints, and priorities established by the Secretary of Defense.

j. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) is responsible for advice and assistance to the Secretary of Defense and DoD components in the performance of the Secretary's programming, budgeting, fiscal management, organizational and management planning, administrative functions, and the design and installation of resource management systems throughout the Department of Defense.

k. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Legislative Affairs) maintains direct liaison with the Congress, the Executive Office of the President, and other government agencies with regard to legislative investigations and other pertinent matters affecting the relations of the Department of Defense with the Congress. The Assistant Secretary provides advice and assistance to the Secretary of Defense and other officials of the Department of Defense on congressional aspects of departmental policies, plans and programs.

1. The Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E) is responsible for operational test programs of DoD components, to include their independent operational test facilities and organizations, and coordination of independent OT&E activities; joint Service operational testing of major weapon systems; and analyses of OT&E results on all major acquisition programs.

m. The Assistant to the Secretary (Intelligence Oversight) conducts oversight of DoD intelligence and counterintelligence activities to ensure their compliance with the law and standards of propriety.

n. The General Counsel is the chief legal officer of the Department of Defense with responsibility for all legal services performed within or involving the Department of Defense. In addition, the General Counsel is responsible for preparation and processing of legislation, executive orders, and proclamations.

o. The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence (CI)) provides policy, oversight, management, and coordination of Service and Defense Agency programs for the command, control, and communications of strategic and theater nuclear forces and theater and tactical forces. This position also is responsible for providing policy and technical support for domestic and international telecommunications activities. In addition, the Assistant Secretary (CI) provides resource management oversight of the complete range of DoD intelligence activities.