The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1924-12-12
IN RE: PROPOSAL TO TRANSFER
THE PROHIBITION ENFORCE
MENT UNIT TO THE DE-
PARTMENT OF JUSTICE


transfer the Prohibition Enforcement
Unit from the Treasury Department to
the Department of Justice is not new A
bill for this purpose (H. r. 8l12) was in
troduced in the 68th Congress by John
Philip Hill, of Maryland 1t was also
considered by the reorganization commit
tee of both houses. The committee re-
fused to make any recommendation or
introduce any bill for such transfer even
though an assistant attorney general rec
commended it. The assistant attorney
general who has charge of prohibition en-
torcement has always opposed the trans
fer OF this department to the Justice De-
partment because it is not in accord with
the sound policy of government to make
the prosecuting department the evidence
gathering department. Practically every
public official who has direct administra-
ton of the prohibition enforcement law
has taken the position that transfer of
the department as proposed would not i'll
crease efficiency
The Eighteenth Amendment prohibits
the manufacture and sale of intoxicating
liquors for beverage purposes. The man
ufacture and sale of such liquor for non
beverage purposes is still permitted un-
der government control All forms of in
toxicating liquors may be diverted to bev-
age use. At the present time since SNUG
CLING is being better suppressed, the prin-
cipal sources of supply of illicit liquor is
the diversion of industrial alcohol to bev-
erage uses. The control over the manu-
facture and withdrawal of such liquors
under the National Prohibition Act is
provided in the permit system. The con-
troll over these Withdrawals is a function
which has always been exercised by the
Treasury Department. The making of
analysis the passing upon formulas for
the manufacture of alcoholic preparations,
the control over distilleries, bonded ware
houses and alcohol plants are all unrelated
to the activities of the Justice Depart
ment. Alcohol and Intoxicating liquors
are still subject to taxation. The Treas
ury Department has to maintain super
vision over Intoxicating liquors in order
to collect the taxes thereon. This func-
ton, it is generally admitted, must be re-
tanned in the Treasury Department. The
taxes collected by this department now
approximate twenty eight million dollars
annually.
Would Increase Cost of Enforcement
Prosecutions involving violations of
the liquor laws may be brought in many
instances either under the Internal Rev
enue laws or the National Prohibition
Act The Treasury Department, while
supervising the manufacture and sale of
liquor to collect the tax, can, with less
expense at the same time, enforce the
prohibition of the manufacture and sale
of such liquors for beverage use. 1t is
necessary for the Treasury Department
to maintain large force of agents to in
vestigate applications for permits and to
supervise the enforcement of the Internal
Revenue laws at industrial alcohol plants
and distilleries. To transfer the permit
system to the Department of Justice
would result in a duplication of machin-
cry since the Justice Department would
have to maintain force to prevent the di-