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Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
Seal of the Central Intelligence Agency
Flag of the Central Intelligence Agency
Incumbent William J. Burns since March 19, 2021
Central Intelligence Agency
Abbreviation	D/CIA
Reports to	Director of National Intelligence (DNI)
Seat	George Bush Center for Intelligence, Langley, Fairfax County, Virginia
Appointer	President with Senate advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Constituting instrument	50 U.S.C. § 3036
Precursor	Director of Central Intelligence
Formation	December 17, 2004
First holder	Porter J. Goss
Deputy	Deputy director
Salary	$203,700 Executive Schedule, Level II
Website	www.cia.gov

The director of the Central Intelligence Agency (D/CIA) is a statutory office (50 U.S.C. § 3036) that functions as the head of the Central Intelligence Agency, which in turn is a part of the United States Intelligence Community.

The director reports to the director of national intelligence (DNI) and is assisted by the deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency (DD/CIA). The director is a civilian or a general or flag officer of the United States Armed Forces nominated by the president of the United States, with the recommendation from the DNI, and must be confirmed by a majority vote of the United States Senate.

History

Before April 21, 2005, the director of central intelligence (DCI) headed both the Intelligence Community and the Central Intelligence Agency. In addition, DCI served as an advisor to the president of the United States on intelligence matters and was the statutory intelligence advisor to the National Security Council (NSC). On April 21, 2005, the director of national intelligence (DNI) took on the roles of head of the Intelligence Community and principal intelligence advisor to the president and the NSC.

The post of DCI was established in 1946 by President Harry S. Truman; it thus predates the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency (created by the National Security Act of 1947). After the end of World War II, the Office of Strategic Services was dismantled. Its functions were split between the departments of state and war (now defense). Truman soon recognized the inefficiency of this arrangement and created the Central Intelligence Group, which could be considered a smaller precursor to the National Security Council. The following year the National Security Act of 1947 created the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Council, while formally defining the duties of the director of Central Intelligence. The duties of the DCI had been further defined over the years by tradition, congressional acts, and Executive Orders.

Beginning in February 2017, the D/CIA was elevated to Cabinet of the United States level status, as designated by the Trump administration. This ended with the beginning of the Biden administration. In July 2023, the D/CIA was once again elevated to Cabinet of the United States level status by the Biden administration.

Order of succession

The order of succession determines which official shall act and perform the functions and duties of the director in the event the director dies, resigns, or otherwise becomes unable to perform their duties. The official will serve as acting director.

If the official is already serving in an acting capacity, or otherwise not eligible under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, the order skips to the next person in line. However, the president of the United States retains discretion to depart from the list in designating an acting director.

List of directors

Position succeeded the director of Central Intelligence.

No.	Image	Name	Start	End	President
1		Porter Goss	April 21, 2005	May 5, 2006		George W. Bush (2001–2009)
2		Michael Hayden	May 30, 2006	February 12, 2009
3		Leon Panetta	February 13, 2009	June 30, 2011		Barack Obama (2009–2017)
–		Michael Morell Acting	July 1, 2011	September 6, 2011
4		David Petraeus	September 6, 2011	November 9, 2012
–		Michael Morell Acting	November 9, 2012	March 8, 2013
5		John Brennan	March 8, 2013	January 20, 2017
–		Meroe Park Acting	January 20, 2017	January 23, 2017		Donald Trump (2017–2021)
6		Mike Pompeo	January 23, 2017	April 26, 2018
7		Gina Haspel	April 26, 2018 Acting: April 26, 2018 – May 21, 2018	January 20, 2021
–		David Cohen Acting	January 20, 2021	March 19, 2021		Joe Biden (2021–2025)
8		Bill Burns	March 19, 2021	Incumbent

See also

• Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation
• Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
• Director of the United States Marshals Service
• Director of the United States Secret Service

References

1. 5 U.S.C. § 5313
2. 10 U.S.C. § 528 Officers serving in certain intelligence positions: military status; exclusion from distribution and strength limitations; pay and allowances
3. 50 U.S.C. § 403-6 Appointment of officials responsible for intelligence-related activities
4. 50 U.S.C. § 3036 Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
5. "A Look Back … The National Security Act of 1947 — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Archived from the original on May 8, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
6. "Office of Strategic Services facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Office of Strategic Services". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
7. "The Organizational Arrangements for the Intelligence Community". www.gpo.gov. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
8. "Truman signs the National Security Act - Jul 26, 1947 - HISTORY.com". HISTORY.com. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
9. "The Cabinet". www.whitehouse.gov. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
10. Shear, Michael D. (July 21, 2023). "Biden Elevates CIA Director To Become a Member of the Cabinet". The New York Times. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
11. "Memorandum on Providing an Order of Succession Within the Central Intelligence Agency – The White House". trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov.
12. "Porter Johnston Goss". Central Intelligence Agency – Library. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
13. "Michael Vincent Hayden". Central Intelligence Agency – Library. Archived from the original on August 4, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
14. "Leon Edward Panetta". Central Intelligence Agency – Library. Archived from the original on August 4, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
15. "David Howell Petraeus". Central Intelligence Agency – Library. Archived from the original on August 4, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
16. "John O. Brennan". Central Intelligence Agency – Leadership. Archived from the original on July 22, 2019. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
17. "Mike Pompeo". Central Intelligence Agency – Leadership. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved February 25, 2017.

v t e Directors of Central Intelligence and the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence	Souers Vandenberg Hillenkoetter Smith Dulles McCone Raborn Helms Schlesinger Colby Bush Turner Casey Webster Gates Woolsey Deutch Tenet Goss
Central Intelligence Agency	Goss Hayden Panetta Petraeus Brennan Pompeo Haspel Burns

• Directors of the Central Intelligence Agency
• 2005 establishments in the United States