The Joint Meritorious Unit Award (JMUA) is a military award that was established on June 4, 1981 by Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger and was implemented by Department of Defense Directive 1348.27 dated July 22, 1982. The Joint Meritorious Unit Award was made retroactive to January 23, 1979. The first organization to receive the Joint Meritorious Unit Award was the “Electronic Warfare During Close Air Support Joint Test Force” and was awarded the decoration on September 30, 1982.