---
type: Body
title: "Secretary of Defense"
classification: "executive-office"
chamber: "executive"
code: "EXEC-DEFENSE-SECRETARY"
parent: "us/executive/defense"
schedule_level: "I"
sources:
  - field: definition
    source: "5 U.S.C. § 5312 (Executive Schedule, Level I)"
confidence: official
tags: [body, executive, executive-office]
timestamp: "2026-07-03"
---

# Secretary of Defense

Cabinet-rank office (Executive Schedule Level I, 5 U.S.C. § 5312), head of the [Department of Defense](/us/executive/defense/index.md).

## Empowered by the U.S. Code

2,378 sections of the U.S. Code vest authority in this office. A sample:

- [3 U.S.C. § 19](/legal/us/code/title-03/chapter-1/section-19.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 13103](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-131/section-13103.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 2109](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-21/section-2109.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 2902](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-29/section-2902.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3115](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-31/section-3115.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3116](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-31/section-3116.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3132](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-31/section-3132.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3307](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-33/section-3307.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3329](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-33/section-3329.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 3502](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-35/section-3502.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 408](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-4/section-408.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 4109](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-41/section-4109.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 415](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-4/section-415.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 416](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-4/section-416.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 4502](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-45/section-4502.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5312](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-53/section-5312.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5334](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-53/section-5334.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5347](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-53/section-5347.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5373](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-53/section-5373.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5518](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5518.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5520a](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5520a.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5538](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5538.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5543](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5543.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5546a](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5546a.md)
- [5 U.S.C. § 5595](/legal/us/code/title-05/chapter-55/section-5595.md)
- …and 2,353 more (full set in data/section_authority_edges.jsonl)