The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-11-29

and complete report.
The state is expanding many mil
lions annually in maintaining its great
interests. The responsibility OF gov
erning over two million people Is not
small and 1t costs much more in eff
fort and in money adequately to per-
form the functions of government. No
complaint may be justly made il the
right and desired result is secured at
a minimum cost, but complaint may
be justly made by those who pay the
bills if. the best results be not obtain
ed at the lowest cost. Iowa as
business concern, handles more prop
erty, employees more men, pays out
more for labor and property, perhaps,
than any other enterprise operating
wholly within its boundaries. If by
by coordination, by
efficient business regeneration, tue
cost may be lowered to the people or
better results be obtaind at the same
cost. we should give freely Of our
time and effort in betterment Of tue
states business affairs.
After careful consideration this
committee believes the present policy
of creating department and then
leaving it practically without indepen-
dent supervision, Is unwise. We be-
lieve the state will receive better SER
vice. If instead Of the present. diffusion
OF powers and responsibilities, the
various departments Of the states
business activities be placed under d.
rect supervision Of department heads.
those department heads to be appoint
ed by the governor and to serve sub
ject to his wish, thus making the gov
ernor the real administrative head of
the state-the real source Of author
ity and concomitant responsibility.
We believe that in governmental
affairs the thing to be most desired is
a plan of reorganization comprehen-
sive enough to meet the growing de.
mands OF the state. Such plan must
have for its purpose the highest eff
cheney at the lowest possible cost. The
system or plan must be such that 1t
may expand naturally and symmetri-
cally as necessity demands.
We believe that the central idea OF
government is action. coupled with re-
sponsibility. The present organization
of the states business, in the Judg-
ment Of your committee, fails to NEE.
those requirements in the fullest pos
sible measure.
There is no plan Of coordinate or
ganization. Offices have been created
and departments established without
reference to what had been done be-
fore There Is diversity OF authority
and division OF responsibility in all
the branches and departments of gov
eminent.
1t is the opinion Of your committee
that the chief cause for such waste
and ineficiency as is apparent in the
administration of the states affairs is
due to the system under which 1t is
conducted-a system which, in the
light Of modern business experience,
has become crude and unw:eldy, not
to say obsolete. For the government:
OF Iowa is only vast business con-
Germ in which the people of the state
are stockholders. Probably no other
large business concern in the state is
without single administrative head
to whom the stockholders look for re-
suits and to whom they give credit or
censura as the business fares we'll or
i'll, either as to its entirety or as to
any department thereof
The constitution provides for the
election of an auditor. secretary aud
treasurer of state, but does not speci-
fically define their duties. Our plan
of reorganization contemplates con-
centration Of authority in one head
the governor of the state-and to ac-
complish this end it is necessary that
the governor be vested with authority
to appoint the various officials through
whom he must carry out his policy.
We would, therefore, leave to the sec
rotary of state the recording part OF
the states affairs, to the auditor the
accounting part Of the states business
and to the treasurer the handling of
the states revenues, Just as was orig
inally contemplated when the consti-
tuition was adopted and before success
sive legislatures placed numerous de-
partments of administration under
these officials.
We hope and believe that through!
this system greater efficiency and
economy will result by combining GER
tain boards and abolishing others, blu:
have not entered upon a specific dis
cussioE Of that feature at this time,
leaving that field for later considera-
ton.
BY this policy we would restore
these officials to the status contem-
plated originally, with the purpose
Of abolishing those Offices
by constitutional amendment. at such
time transferring their remaining
powers and duties to the officials to
be now referred to. This would not
only concentrate authority in the gov
ernor as the appointing power, elm
mating division of authority at present