Term length No fixed term | Constituting instrument 45 U.S.C. § 1452 | |
 | ||
Style Mister/Madam Deputy Secretary
The Honorable
(formal address in writing) Reports to Secretary of the Interior Seat Washington, D.C., United States Appointer The President
with Senate advice and consent | ||
The Deputy Secretary of the Interior, in the United States government, advises and assists the Secretary of the Interior in the supervision and direction of the Department of the Interior and its activities, and succeeds the Secretary in his or her absence, sickness, or unavailability. The Deputy Secretary of the Interior is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. In 1990, the title of the position was changed from Under Secretary of the Interior to Deputy Secretary of the Interior.
With the resignation Secretary Gale Norton announced March 10, 2006, effective at the end of March, Lynn Scarlett became the Acting Secretary of the Interior until President George W. Bush's nomination for Secretary, Dirk Kempthorne, was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 26 of that year.
Section 3346 of U.S. Code within Title 5, or 5 U.S.C. § 3346, details time limitations of acting officers. An acting officer may serve no longer than 210 days after the vacancy, from the date a first or second nomination is pending before the Senate, the date a first or second nomination is withdrawn, rejected, or returned, or the date the Senate reconvenes if the appointment has taken place while Congress has adjourned sine die.
List of Deputy Secretaries of Interior
Other former Deputy Secretaries include David J. Hayes who served during the second term of the Clinton administration from 1997 to 2001, and J. Steven Griles who served during President George W. Bush's first term from 2001 to 2004.