Installations Nomination

President Obama this week nominated Katherine Hammack to become the Army's assistant secretary for installations and environment.

According to Hammack's bio, as released by the White House:

Katherine G. Hammack has more than 25 years of experience as an energy and sustainability professional with private industry. Currently she is a leader in Ernst & Young’s (EY’s) Climate Change and Sustainability Services, an international professional services firm. At EY she has focused on the evaluation of energy conservation projects, green buildings, energy efficiency strategies, demand side management programs, and marketing electricity in deregulated markets. In that capacity she worked with clients to obtain Energy Star or LEED certification for their new construction or existing buildings. Katherine was the key LEED advisor on the world’s largest LEED-NC certified project (8.3 million square feet). Prior to joining Ernst & Young, Katherine was a marketing manager for a large electric utility, focused on services for architects and engineers. Katherine is a founding member of US Green Building Council in Washington, D.C. She was a consultant to the White House on the "Greening" of the White House and Executive Office Building where she led the group focused on Indoor Environmental Quality issues. Ms. Hammack has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Oregon State University and an M.B.A. from the University of Hartford. She is a Certified Energy Manager and LEED Accredited Professional.

The Defense Department is starting 2010 with vacancies in 21 of its top appointed positions, including acquisition posts charged with overseeing multibillion-dollar weapons programs, Inside the Pentagon reported earlier this month, with Hammack's position being one of them:

Of the 54 DOD positions that require presidential appointees confirmed by the Senate, 39 percent are vacant, said Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Les’ Melnyk.

Eleven of the vacancies have nominees awaiting Senate confirmation, but the White House has yet to issue nominations for the other 10.

Frank Kendall, who would be the Pentagon’s No. 2 acquisition official under DOD acquisition chief Ashton Carter, is one of the nominees awaiting Senate confirmation. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) is holding up Kendall’s confirmation, according to published reports. Also, the White House has not announced a nominee for assistant secretary of defense for acquisition, a post formerly known as deputy under secretary of defense for acquisition and technology.

Of the three military departments, only the Navy has an acquisition executive in place. Sean Stackley, a holdover from the Bush administration, continues to serve in that post. But Malcolm O’Neill, the nominee for the Army’s top acquisition job, is awaiting Senate confirmation. And the White House has not yet nominated anyone to be the Air Force’s acquisition chief.