Which term represents a decisive action component that sustains civil authority operations?

• A. Retrograde
• B. Defense Support to Civil Authorities (DSCA)
• C. Tempo
• D. Attack

Answer: (B)

Defense Support to Civil Authorities, or DSCA, represents the military’s role in delivering decisive, sustained support to civilian authorities during emergencies. It covers coordinating and executing actions—such as security, logistics, medical aid, and rescue—to help civilian agencies maintain operations and restore services. This makes it the best fit for a term describing a component that keeps civil authority activities going under legal authority and through ongoing coordination with civilian agencies.

Retrograde refers to withdrawing forces, not sustaining civilian operations. Tempo describes the rhythm or pace of operations, not the specific mechanism for domestic civil-support missions. Attack is offensive action against an adversary, which isn’t about supporting civilian authorities in emergencies.