Harvey E. Johnson, Jr.
Deputy Administrator and Chief Operating Officer of FEMA
www.fema.gov

Harvey E. Johnson, Jr. (USCG, retired Vice Admiral) is the Deputy Administrator and Chief Operating Officer of FEMA. He came to FEMA in April 2006 after serving as Commander, Pacific Area of the U.S. Coast Guard since June 2004.

Mr. Johnson has a wealth of emergency and crisis management experience, including support to Admiral Thad Allen and the Coast Guard's Hurricane Katrina response efforts by coordinating and deploying West Coast resources.

His operational experience includes various Coast Guard efforts, including search and rescue, freighter grounding, vessel break-up and pollution response for the motor vessel Selendang Ayu and the tank vessel Seabulk Pride in Alaskan waters. In addition, he participated in multiple Naval War College, Lead Shield and Rogue Vessel exercises in response to simulated maritime homeland security threats and the management of hundreds of Coast Guard law enforcement, search and rescue and pollution response cases in the Pacific.

While serving as Commander, Pacific Area, Mr. Johnson led efforts that encompassed more than 73 million miles west of the Rocky Mountains and throughout the Pacific Basin to the Far East. Prior to this assignment, he was the Commander, Seventh Coast Guard District and served as the Director, Homeland Security Task Force-Southeast, where he directed Operation Able Sentry, the Department of Homeland Security's response to the crisis in Haiti. In addition to these duties, he served as the Executive Director of the Coast Guard's transition into the Department of Homeland Security, Director of Operations Capability and Director of Operations Policy.

Prior to promotion to Flag rank in 2001, Mr. Johnson served as the Executive Assistant to the Commandant of the Coast Guard. Other assignments included: Commanding Officer of Air Station Brooklyn, and concurrently as Commanding Officer of Air Station San Diego and Commander, Activities San Diego. He also served as a fellow at the Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Studies Group in Newport, Rhode Island.

Mr. Johnson began his career as a Deck Watch Officer aboard the Cutter Steadfast (WMEC-623). He then earned his Naval Aviator wings in 1977. He flew the HH-52A helicopter at Coast Guard Air Station Houston, the HH-3F at Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, the HH-65A in Brooklyn and Corpus Christi and the HH-60J in San Diego. His staff assignments include: Aviation Assignment Officer in the Office of Personnel and Training; Program Reviewer and Analyst within the Office of the Chief of Staff; Deputy Chief, Programs Division within the Office of the Chief of Staff; and member of the Streamlining Team.

His major decorations include the Legion of Merit (3), the Meritorious Service Medal (3), the Coast Guard Commendation Medal (2) and the Coast Guard Achievement Medal.

Mr. Johnson received a Bachelor of Science degree at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1975. He earned a Master of Science degree at the Naval Postgraduate School in 1983 and a Master of Science degree in Management as a Sloan Fellow at the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1993.

Mr. Johnson is a native of Tampa, Florida. He is married to the former Janet L. Cronin of Boston, Massachusetts, and they have two children, Jennifer and Scott.