Department of Defense
INSTRUCTION
NUMBER 5405.03
February 18, 2016
ATSD(PA)
SUBJECT: Development, Submission, and Approval of Proposed Public Affairs Guidance
(PPAG)
References: See Enclosure 1
1. PURPOSE. In accordance with the authority in DoD Directive (DoDD) 5122.05 (Reference
(a)), this instruction reissues DoD Instruction 5405.3 (Reference (b)) to establish policy, assign
responsibilities, and prescribe procedures for development of PPAG.
2. APPLICABILITY
a. This instruction applies to OSD, the Military Departments, the Office of the Chairman of
the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Staff, the Combatant Commands (CCMDs), the Office of
the Inspector General of the Department of Defense, the Defense Agencies, the DoD Field
Activities, and all other organizational entities within the DoD (referred to collectively in this
instruction as the “DoD Components”).
b. The provisions of this instruction do not limit the independence of the Inspector General
of the Department of Defense of the authority to provide information to Congress and to other
entities as provided for in Appendix 3 of Title 5, United States Code (also known as “The
Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended” (Reference (c))) and DoDD 5106.01 (Reference
(d)).
3. POLICY. It is DoD policy that:
a. The sole approval authority for public affairs guidance (PAG) for all military operations,
exercises, and events that have the potential to attract national and international media attention
due to their size, importance, or political sensitivities, or for PAGs that require department-to-
department level interagency coordination, is the Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of
Defense for Public Affairs (OATSD(PA)).
b. PPAG will be submitted to the OATSD(PA) as early as possible but no later than 30 days
before the desired initial announcement date or the start of all pre-planned, scheduled military
operations, exercises, and events meeting the criteria in paragraph 3.a. PPAG will be submitted
