New-York tribune., 1921-01-06
with more complete information still
further to reduce expenditures.
Board Could Pass Upon
Printing and Supplies Bills


"Jurisdiction over two other sub
jects, printing and the purchase of
supplies, might properly be conferred
on such board.
1--WE now have printing board consist
ing Of the Comptroller, Attorney Gen
eral and Secretary of State, with power
to let the contracts, but no control
whatever over the amount Of printing.
This subject has frequently been adj
vertcd to but nithng effective has been
done to check what all agree to be a
gross abuse in the amount Of absolute
" useless printing Of departmental re-
ports, bulletins, and the like. The
powers of the present printing board
might we'll be transferred to the pro
posed board, with all the additional
powers needed to check waste and use
less expense. also recommend that
nil laws making it mandatory to print
a designated number of reports be re-
pealed. A saving of at least $500, 900
a year should be made in this item,
and I have no doubt that more than
that can be saved.
"By Chapter 400 of the laws of 1918
a central supply committee of seven
members was created. l suggest that
the powers of this committee might ap-
propriately be transferred to the pro-
posed Board of Estimate and Control
and that central purchasing Of depart
mental supplies can we'll be conducted
through the proposed bureau to be
created under it.
employees in different departments
who are paid from particular funds,
some from bond moneys and some from
general appropriations for construc-
ton, and the like. They thus do not
appear in the budget and there is prac-
tically no check on their employment.
Their salaries aggregate in round num-
bers 81 100000 There may be reasons
for temporary employments on par
ticular work, payment for which may
properly be made out of the appropria-
tion therefor. 1t may be that those
temporarily employed on projects FIN
anced by bond issues should be paid
therefrom instead Of from current
which the practice has grown it is
obviously open to grave abuses, and I
invite careful scrutiny of the subj ect.
II find in the budget but few items
for automobiles or their maintenance
and operation But it is common
knowledge that a large number are
being maintained by the state That
is already forbidden by statute unless
there is specific appropriation there
for, and if the law is defective it
should be amended to make it effective.
All automobiles in the state service
should bear some insignia to denote
ownership. l recommend that it be
made misdemeanor to use state
automobile for anything but state
business.
The Reorganization and
Consolidation of Departments
"The constitutional convention of
1915 adopted a plan of consolidation
Of departments providing for seventeen
departments. The reconstruction COM
mission, appointed by my predecessor,
recommended eighteen. The last Legis-
lature adopted alternative proposals
for consolidation into eighteen or
twenty-one departments.
There are differences Of opinion as
to the merits of each plan. The most
serious objection is. in my judgment,
common to all, and that is, that no
theoretical grouping will be found in
practice to work as expected, but when
once rigdly fixed in the constitution
it can only be changed by constitu-
tional amendment Moreover. the ten
dency Of all of the plans is in the di-
rection of Bureaucracy. The rising cost
OF government is frequently ascribed
to the number of state departments.
That is not tke cause, but is. inste ad
the effect The cause is the constant
assumption of new functions and