Mr. Thomas Harker CPA

Thomas W. Harker became Acting Secretary of the Navy on Jan. 20, 2021, after prior service as Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller). He was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Financial Management and Comptroller) in 2018. A 1990 graduate of the University of California Berkeley, he received an MBA from the University of Miami in 2000. A 20-year veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, his career met with operational success, including multi-ton drug seizures on the high seas. Ashore, he was assigned positions of increasing responsibility in budget, acquisition, internal controls, audit readiness and financial reporting. His leadership of the Coast Guard audit readiness and internal control program contributed to a clean audit at DHS after 10 successive disclaimers. Before leaving active duty, he led OMB’s Campaign to Cut Waste, updated OMB Circular A-136, and drafted governmentwide financial policy. Harker then served as an auditor and consultant at a large public accounting firm, auditing CFO Act agencies (including the first audit of the U.S. Marine Corps). He assisted the Joint Staff in developing and implementing an audit readiness plan and improved Coast Guard accountability for property. After returning to government, he led Coast Guard financial reporting, policy, property management and audit readiness efforts, which led to consecutive clean audit opinions for DHS. He was appointed to the Senior Executive Service at the Department of Veterans Affairs as Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Financial Policy.