The deputy secretary of energy is a high-ranking position within the United States Department of Energy. The deputy secretary is the second-highest-ranking official of the department and assists the secretary of energy in the supervision and direction of the department. The deputy secretary succeeds the secretary in their absence, sickness, or unavailability.

The deputy secretary is appointed by the president with the consent of the United States Senate to serve at the request of the president.

History

The position of deputy secretary of energy was formed on October 1, 1977, with the creation of the Department of Energy when President Jimmy Carter signed the Department of Energy Organization Act.

Deputy secretaries of energy

The following persons served as the deputy secretary of energy:

No.ImageDeputy secretaryTook officeLeft officeRefs.
1John F. O'LearyOctober 21, 1977September 30, 1979
2John C. SawhillOctober 4, 1979October 8, 1980
ActingLynn ColemanDecember 23, 1980January 20, 1981
3W. Kenneth DavisMay 14, 1981January 13, 1983
4Danny Julian BoggsNovember 3, 1983March 25, 1986
5William Flynn MartinJune 6, 1986June 6, 1988
6Joseph F. SalgadoMay 21, 1988January 20, 1989
7Henson MooreApril 12, 1989January 31, 1992
8Linda StuntzJanuary 31, 1992January 22, 1993
9William H. WhiteJune 26, 1993January 20, 1995
10Charles B. CurtisAugust 1995May 1997
11Betsy Moler19971998
12T.J. GlauthierMarch 18, 19992001
13Frank BlakeJune 1, 2001April 2002
14Kyle E. McSlarrowNovember 27, 2002February 2005
15Clay SellMarch 17, 2005February 29, 2008
ActingJeffrey KupferMarch 1, 2008January 20, 2009
16Daniel PonemanMay 18, 2009October 5, 2014
17Elizabeth Sherwood-RandallOctober 10, 2014January 20, 2017
18Dan BrouilletteAugust 8, 2017December 4, 2019
ActingMark MenezesDecember 4, 2019August 4, 2020
19August 4, 2020January 20, 2021
20David TurkMarch 25, 2021January 20, 2025
21James DanlyJune 11, 2025Incumbent