The Office of Secretary of War for Legislative Affairs is responsible for providing support to the Secretary of War in his dealings with the White House, Cabinet Members, Members of Congress, and the Department of State. The high visibility and criticality of these actions mandate that stringent controls be placed on the receipts control, processing, preparation, dispatch, filing (including library of reference materials), research, and analysis of many forms of information.

The Assistant Secretary of War (ASW) for Legislative Affairs (LA) is responsible directly to the Secretary of War for maintaining liaison and relationships with members of Congress and the Executive Branch. In carrying out these responsibilities, the ASW(LA) leads a staff of managers, action officers, and support personnel who manage, control, direct and monitor communications and activities involving Congress and elements of the Department of War (DoW).  This includes the Office of Secretary of War (OSW), Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the Armed Services, and War Agencies.