United States Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs

Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs of the United States
Seal of the Department of Veterans Affairs
Flag of the deputy secretary
Incumbent Paul Lawrence since March 29, 2025
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
Style	Mr. Deputy Secretary
Reports to	Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Seat	Washington, D.C.
Appointer	The president with Senate advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Formation	March 17, 1989
First holder	Anthony Joseph Principi
Salary	Executive Schedule, level II
Website	www.va.gov

The deputy secretary of veterans affairs, in the United States government, is the chief operating officer of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, responsible for a nationwide system of health care services, benefits programs, and national cemeteries for America's veterans and their dependents. ^[1] The deputy secretary is the second-highest-ranking officer in the department and succeeds the secretary in the event of his resignation, death, or otherwise inability to fulfill his duties. ^[2]

The deputy secretary is appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. ^[3] The position was created with the creation of the Department of Veterans Affairs in October 1988. ^[4]

List of deputy secretaries of veterans affairs

No.	Portrait	Name	Term of office		President(s) served under
			Start	End
1		Anthony Joseph Principi #	March 17, 1989 [5]	September 26, 1992 [5]	George H. W. Bush
2		Hershel Wayne Gober #	February 4, 1993 [6]	August 10, 2000 [7]	Bill Clinton
–		Edward A. "Ned" Powell, Jr. (acting)	August 10, 2000 [7]	January 20, 2001 [8]
3		Leo S. Mackay, Jr.	May 24, 2001 [9]	September 30, 2003 [10]	George W. Bush
4		Gordon H. Mansfield #	January 22, 2004 [11]	January 20, 2009
5		W. Scott Gould	April 9, 2009 [12]	May 17, 2013 [1]	Barack Obama
6		Sloan D. Gibson #	February 11, 2014 [13]	January 20, 2017
–		Gina Farrisee (acting)	January 20, 2017	February 25, 2017	Donald Trump
–		Scott Blackburn (acting)	February 26, 2017	August 9, 2017
7		Thomas G. Bowman	August 10, 2017	June 15, 2018
8		James Byrne	August 28, 2018	September 16, 2019
			September 16, 2019	February 3, 2020
–		Pamela J. Powers (acting)	April 2, 2020 [14]	January 20, 2021
–		Carolyn Clancy (acting)	January 20, 2021	July 19, 2021	Joe Biden
9		Donald Remy	July 19, 2021	April 1, 2023
–		Guy Kiyokawa (acting)	April 1, 2023	September 19, 2023
10		Tanya J. Bradsher	September 20, 2023	January 20, 2025
11		Paul Lawrence	March 29, 2025	Incumbent	Donald Trump

References

^ Acted as Secretary during their tenure. See the list of secretaries for dates.

1. Al Kamen (May 15, 2013). "VA deputy secretary Scott Gould departs Friday". The Washington Post . Washington, D.C. ISSN   0190-8286. OCLC   1330888409.
2. "Memorandum for the Secretary of Veterans Affairs" . Retrieved September 24, 2007.
3. 38 U.S.C.   § 304 : Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Accessed September 24, 2007.
4. "Search Results – THOMAS (Library of Congress)" . Retrieved September 24, 2007.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
5. White House. "Anthony Principi Secretary of Veterans Affairs 2001–2005" . Retrieved September 24, 2005. Mr. Principi served as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, VA's second-highest executive position, from March 17, 1989, to September 26, 1992, when he was named Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs by President George Bush.
6. US Department of Veterans Affairs. The Honorable Hershel W. Gober Archived January 29, 2004, at the Wayback Machine . July 2000. Accessed January 15, 2008. "He had served as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs since being sworn in by President Clinton on February 4, 1993."
7. US Department of Veterans Affairs. Ned Powell Named Acting VA Deputy Secretary. August 9, 2000. Accessed January 15, 2008. "President Clinton has appointed Edward A. (Ned) Powell, Jr., as the Acting Deputy Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)."
8. Cahoon. Ben. Department of Veterans Affairs. WorldStatesmen.org. Accessed January 15, 2008.
9. US Department of Veterans Affairs. Leo S. Mackay, Jr., PhD at the Wayback Machine (archive index). January 2002. Accessed January 16, 2008. "Leo S. Mackay Jr., PhD, was nominated to be Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs on April 30, 2001, and was confirmed by the Senate on May 24."
10. US Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Leo Mackay Steps Down as VA Deputy Secretary November 15, 2003. Accessed January 16, 2008. "Dr. Leo S. Mackay Jr. announced his resignation today as the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), effective September 30."
11. US Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Official Biography The Honorable Gordon H. Mansfield. November 2006. Accessed January 16, 2008. "Mr. Mansfield was nominated to serve as Deputy Secretary by President George W. Bush on November 3, 2003, and confirmed by the Senate on January 22, 2004."
12. "Gould Sworn in as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs" (Press release). Department of Veterans Affairs. April 9, 2009. Archived from the original on April 16, 2009. Retrieved April 26, 2009. W. Scott Gould, a retired naval reservist and senior executive with experience in the Federal government and the private sector, has taken the oath of office as the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
13. "Sloan D. Gibson". Department of Veterans Affairs. February 11, 2014. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 11, 2014.
14. "Pamela J. Powers - Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs". www.va.gov. Archived from the original on January 8, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2020.

38°54′2.8″N77°02′4.0″W / 38.900778°N 77.034444°W / 38.900778; -77.034444