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Agency Structure

Overview

The Selective Service System’s structure consists of the National Headquarters, Data Management Center, and three Region Headquarters, with 124 full-time employees authorized. Regional headquarters are responsible for maintaining and training the local boards within their jurisdictions. Selective Service has more than 2,000 local and appeal boards, comprised of approximately 11,000 volunteer civilian board members nationwide.

In the event of a draft, local and appeal boards would be mobilized to form the “backbone” of Selective Service. Board members would decide draft deferments, postponements, and exemptions based upon claims filed by the men who are selected for induction.

Also part of Selective Service is a field structure of Reserve Service Members (RSMs). Each state, US territory, and District of Columbia and New York City have a state director. Selective Service’s RSMs, local board members, and state directors are the agency’s standby components and serve part-time.  They remain trained and ready to be called into service in the event of a draft.

 

HeadquartersReserve Service MembersLocal Boards

Selective Service System regional map

Headquarters

National Headquarters

Provides leadership, administrative and technical support to the agency, as well as plans and develops new methods for making a future draft fair, equitable, and efficient.

Director: Joel C. Spangenberg, Acting

Address:
Selective Service System
National Headquarters
Arlington, VA 22209-2425

Number of Employees: 
49 full-time employees authorized

 

Data Management Center

Responsible for processing registration materials and records.

Director: Nicole F. Harris

Address:
Selective Service System
P.O. Box 94638
Palatine, IL 60094-4638

Number of Employees:
51 full-time employees authorized

 

Region I

Base of operations for the agency’s field structure in the northeastern and midwestern United States, including New York City and Chicago. Covers 16 states and the District of Columbia.

Region Director: Thomas Kenney

Address:
Selective Service System
Region I
North Chicago, IL 60064-9983

Number of Employees:
9 full-time employees authorized
18 state directors, intermittent employees
60 part-time reservists
3,620 volunteer local board members authorized

Region II

Base of operations in the southeastern and south central United States, including Houston, Miami, and Atlanta. Covers 13 states and 2 territories.

Region Director: Carlos M. Perez

Address:
Selective Service System
Region II
Marietta, GA 30069-5010

Number of Employees:
9 full-time employees authorized
15 state directors, intermittent employees
58 part-time reservists
3,410 volunteer local board members authorized

 

Region III

Base of operations for the agency’s field structure in the western United States, including the Los Angeles and Denver areas. Covers 21 states and 2 territories.

Region Director: Steven L. Kett

Address:
Selective Service System
Region III
Aurora, CO 80011-9526

Number of Employees:
9 full-time employees authorized
23 state directors, intermittent employees
57 part-time reservists
3,315 volunteer local board members authorized

Reserve Service Members

Regional headquarters also manage and train hundreds of Reserve Service Members (RSMs) assigned to Selective Service in their regions. The Selective Service System has about 150 National Guard and Reserve members authorized. They are members of every branch of the Reserve Components of the Armed Forces, with the exception of the Air National Guard. RSMs perform 48 drills and two weeks of annual training per year.

This part-time cadre of military officers is paid by the respective military service component; however, the individual services are reimbursed for most costs incurred, including RSM travel, pay, and benefit expenses. The reservists’ jobs are to train and be ready in the case of a return to the draft, to assist in improving on-time registration of young men in America’s communities, and to conduct training for board members. In the event of a draft, RSMs would open and staff more than 400 Selective Service area offices, be assigned to state headquarters, and serve as liaison officers at Military Entrance Processing Stations. RSM assignments and activities are controlled by each region headquarters.

Serve with Us

If you are a Guard member or Reservist, find out more about opportunities to serve as a Selective Service RSM in your area by emailing us at HR-Mil@sss.gov.

Peacetime Duties

  • Interview Selective Service board member candidates
  • Train board members
  • Ensure space, equipment, and supplies are available in the event a draft is activated
  • Participate in readiness exercises
  • Remind men to comply with the registration requirement

Active Draft Duties

  • Open various state and local Selective Service offices nationwide
  • Recruit and train staff to support Selective Service activities during the draft
  • Provide refresher training to board members

Local Boards

A Selective Service local board is a group of citizen volunteers whose mission, during a draft, would be to decide who among the registrants in their community would receive deferments, postponements, or exemption from military service based on the individual registrant’s circumstances and beliefs.

Appeal Boards

The registrant appeal process begins when a registrant is dissatisfied with his Local Board’s decision about his reclassification request and initiates an appeal. The first line of appeal is to the District Appeal Board. In the case of non-unanimous decisions of the District Appeal Board, the registrant may appeal to the President through the National Appeal Board.

The Director and State Directors of Selective Service may also take appeals to a District Appeal Board to ensure fair and equitable administration of Selective Service law and regulations.

District Appeal Boards are located in each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and Virgin Islands. The law requires at least one such board within the area of each federal judicial district in the United States and within each territory and possession.

Peacetime Duties

The board member program is one of the primary components of the Selective Service System. Approximately 11,000 volunteers are currently trained in Selective Service regulations and procedures so that if a draft is reinstated, they will be able to fulfill their obligations fairly and equitably. Board members undergo an initial 8-hour training session and then participate in annual training in which they review sample cases similar to real-life situations.

Active Draft Duties

Registrants with low lottery numbers will be ordered to report for a physical, mental, and moral evaluation at a Military Entrance Processing Station to determine whether they are fit for military service. Once he is notified of the results of the evaluation, a registrant will be given 10 days to file a claim for exemption, postponement, or deferment. At that time, board members will begin reviewing and deciding the outcome of the individual registrant’s case. They may personally interview the registrant and persons who know him to gain a better understanding of his situation. A man may appeal a Local Board’s decision to a Selective Service District Appeal Board.

How Board Members are Appointed

Local board members are appointed by the Director of Selective Service in the name of the President, on recommendations made by their respective state governors or an equivalent public official.  If you are interest in serving as a local board member, you may apply online for an application package.

Some requirements to be a board member are that they be:

  • Must be 18 years old or older
  • Must be a citizen of the United States
  • Men must have registered with Selective Service, except those born from March 29, 1957 through December 31, 1959
  • Must not be a member of law enforcement occupation as defined by Selective Service policy (example: police officer or judge)
  • Must not be an active or retired career member of the Armed Forces or Reserves or National Guard
  • Must not have been convicted of any criminal offense

 

Learn More About Volunteering

Additional Requirements by Board:

  • National Appeal Board Members cannot have served as a member of the board for an accumulative period of more than five years.
  • District Appeal Board Members must be residents of the federal judicial district geographical area over which the board has jurisdiction and they cannot have served as a member of a Selective Service board for an accumulative period of more than 20 years.
  • Local Board Members must be residents of the county or political subdivision in which the board has jurisdiction and they cannot have served as a member of a Selective Service board for an accumulative period of more than 20 years.