Joint Chiefs of Staff

In the United States military, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) are a committee of the senior officers of the uniformed services, headed by a Chairman and Vice Chairman. The JCS is responsible for developing national security strategy, but is not in the direct line of command of forces in the field..

Legal

While there was an informal Joint Chiefs of Staff organization during the Second World War, the organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was formalized by the National Security Act of 1947. That legislation made the CJCS a statutory advisor to the National Security Council, although not a voting member of the NSC. Under the U.S. system of civilian control of the military, the United States Secretary of Defense actually is the head of the Department of Defense.

Originally, the individual uniformed service chiefs were equals, with the Chairman chairing their committee and having his own staff, but being on a par with the:

• Chief of Staff of the Army
• Chief of Naval Operations
• Chief of Staff of the Air Force
• Commandant of the Marine Corps

With the passage of what is usually called the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1968, or, formally, the Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1968, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was made the senior member, and the position of Vice Chairmanestablished. This act made the CJCS the principal military advisor to the President, the Chairman was designated as

... the principal military adviser to the President, the National Security Council, and the Secretary of Defense...After first informing the Secretary of Defense, a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff may make such recommendations to Congress relating to the Department of Defense as he considers appropriate.

The Chairman and his staff may assist the passage of orders from the National Command Authority to the Unified Combatant Commanders. Goldwater-Nichols made it clear that the operational chain of command runs from the President, to the Secretary of Defense, to the commanders of the geographic (e.g., Pacific Command) and functional (e.g., Strategic Command) Unified Combatant Commands (UCC).

Joint Staff

A Joint Staff, legally limited to 400 officers, assists the Chairman, and supports the JCS in their joint function. The legislation explicitly states "The Joint Staff shall not operate or be organized as an overall Armed Forces General Staff and shall have no executive authority. The Joint Staff may be organized and may operate along conventional staff lines." At the time of the JCS creation in 1947, there was considerable political worry about creating an autonomous "Great General Staff" as had existed in Germany.

There have been a number of workarounds to the 400 officer limitations. Certain functions, such as intelligence, may have a titular representative in the Joint Staff, but the JCS is actually supported by a separate Defense Intelligence Agency.

JCS Responsibilities

The JCS prepares master doctrines and plans, with a great number of implementing processes, instructions and guidelines. A key process is the Joint Strategic Planning System (JSPS), which produces the Joint Strategic Capabilities Plan (JSCP).

JSPS

"This System provides providing strategic direction to the Armed Forces; prepares strategic plans; prepares and reviews joint operation plans; advises the President and Secretary of Defense on requirements, programs, and budgets; and provides net assessment on the capabilities of the Armed Forces of the United States and its allies as compared with those of their potential adversaries.

JSCP

The JSCP allocates resources to the Unified Combatant Commands, based on priorities given to their missions, the military budget, and intelligence assessments of the threats to the UCCs. The Plan provides a coherent framework for capabilities-based military advice provided to the President and Secretary of Defense (i.e., the National Command Authority).<ref name=JP1-02>