What are the responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense?
As required by Section 902 of Public Law 107-314, the Assistant Secretary of Defense (ASD(HD)) is responsible for “the overall supervision of the homeland defense activities of the Department of Defense” under the authority, direction and control of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and, as appropriate, in coordination with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. As such, the ASD(HD) provides oversight to DoD homeland defense activities, develops policies, conducts analyses, provides advice, and makes recommendations on homeland defense, defense support of civil authorities, emergency preparedness and domestic crisis management matters within the Department.Specifically, the ASD(HD) assists the Secretary of Defense in providing policy direction on homeland defense matters through the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to United States Northern Command and other Combatant Commands, as applicable, to guide the development and execution of their plans and activities. To focu
