Skip Navigation

About Us

Overview of the United States Coast Guard

The U.S. Coast Guard is one of the five armed forces of the United States and the only military organization within the Department of Homeland Security. Since 1790 the Coast Guard has safeguarded our Nation's maritime interests and environment around the world. The Coast Guard is an adaptable, responsive military force of maritime professionals whose broad legal authorities, capable assets, geographic diversity and expansive partnerships provide a persistent presence along our rivers, in the ports, littoral regions and on the high seas. Coast Guard presence and impact is local, regional, national and international. These attributes make the Coast Guard a unique instrument of maritime safety, security and environmental stewardship.

Publications

Download PDF
Coast Guard Ethos		 Download PDF Coast Guard Snapshot (updated August 2015) Pub1 Page
Publication 1 - Doctrine for the U.S. Coast Guard (February 2014)		 USCG Budget in Brief
USCG Budget in Brief
(February 2016)
Download Plug-Ins: Some of the links on this page require a plug-in to view them. Links to the plug-ins are available below.
Click Here to Download Adobe Acrobat Reader Adobe Acrobat Reader (PDF)
Last Modified 9/21/2016