Coast Guard Overhaul: New Secretary Position Created to Manage Day-to-Day Operations

The Coast Guard Improvement Act of 2025 is making a major structural change by creating a brand-new, high-level civilian position: the Secretary of the Coast Guard (Sec. 2). This isn’t just a title change; it’s a total shift in who runs the show day-to-day, affecting everything from recruiting to equipment purchasing and training.

The New Boss: A Civilian at the Helm

This new Secretary of the Coast Guard will be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Their job is essentially to handle all the management duties—organizing, supplying, equipping, and ensuring the service’s programs align with national security goals (Sec. 2). Think of it as putting a CEO in charge of the Coast Guard’s business operations. Normally, this new Secretary reports directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), cutting out any middle management within the department. However, if the Coast Guard is operating as part of the Navy (which happens in wartime or by presidential direction), the new Secretary reports to the Secretary of the Navy on those specific matters.

Crucially, there’s a rule designed to keep this leadership civilian: if you were a commissioned officer on active duty in the Armed Forces, you have to wait five years after leaving active duty before you can take this Secretary job (Sec. 2). This civilian oversight is meant to ensure the service’s massive budget and logistical operations are managed with a focus on administrative efficiency rather than purely military command structure.

What Happens to the Commandant?

This is where the structure gets interesting. Currently, the Commandant of the Coast Guard is the military leader and the top administrator. Under this new plan, the Commandant will now report directly to the new Secretary of the Coast Guard (Sec. 2). The Commandant’s primary role shifts to helping the Secretary carry out those massive management responsibilities. This significantly curtails the Commandant’s direct authority over the service’s administrative functions. For the Coast Guard staff, this means the person signing off on their budgets, transfers, and equipment needs will be this new civilian Secretary, not the military leader they’ve traditionally answered to.

The 30-Day Clock and the Reorganization Shuffle

Because you can’t just drop a new boss into a massive organization without chaos, the bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit a full reorganization plan to Congress within 30 days of the bill becoming law (Sec. 2). That’s a tight deadline for a major federal overhaul. This plan has to detail exactly how many military and civilian staff will be moved to the new Secretary’s office, which legislative responsibilities need to shift from the Commandant or the DHS Secretary, and how funds and assets will be transferred. For staff within DHS and the Coast Guard, this means a period of intense uncertainty and potential reassignment as the new structure is put into place. While the DHS Secretary can modify the plan until it takes effect, the initial 30-day requirement ensures Congress knows exactly how this massive structural change is going to roll out.