Evening star., 1927-04-27

! but the intensive StuuA li"1"o ~
Institute shows that there are not
| few features in respect to which the
! system as It now stands is susceptl-
bla of Improvement. which are point
ed out in the Willoughby report.
Tpdenendencc Held Desirable.
II ia highly desirable that the ano-
malotls situation which exists with the
Budget Bureau, technically a service
in the Treasury Department shoua
be corrected, the institute says, fecah
ing that the Good bill, which was the
basis for the present budget ana ac-
counting act. provided that the Bureau
of the Budget should be an independ-
ont agency attached directly to the
! office of the President and that the
concession Of nominally attaching II
TO the Treasury Department was mace
in order to secure the prompt passage
of the act. Emphasis is laid on these
facts: .,,,.-
| II is desirable that the responsibility
of the President for the formulation OF
the budget should be emphasized IN
every possible way, and having the
bureau attached directly to his office
tends to achieve this aim.
At the present time the approprl-
| ations for the bureau are carried in
Department, although the expenses OF
the bureau form no part of the eX-
uenses. proper of conducting the Treas
urv Department, while they do const1-
tute a part of the expenses of the
President in discharging the duties of
his Office.
There is always the danger that
some future Secretary Of the Treas
ury may want to assert his authority
in respect to the Bureau in a way that
would cause trouble. Vice President
| Dawes. while first Director Of the
Budget, called attention to this possi
bility. President Harding also in his
letter to the joint committee on re-
| organization of the Administrative
Branch of the Government urged that
this action should be taken. The Joint
Committee in it's report, formulated
after exhaustive hearings, concurred
in this recommendation.
In support Of the proposal to make
the Budget Bureau a bureau of gen
eral administration, the Institute for
Government Research argues that the
most fundamental feature of the Ma
tional Budget system is the change it
has effected in the character of the
Office of the President, so that the
| President now possesses, not merely
the nominal, but the actual powers
and responsibilities of a general mana
ger. The Bureau of the Budget is
the central agency through which he
exercises these powers and RESPONSE
| bilities.
AT the time OF the passage Of the
act there were in existence number
| OF agencies having for their duties
| the performance of certain activities
| falling in the field of general admin
Stration-eXercising the general di-
| rection, supervision and control of the
administrative services that is essen
/ tial if they are to work in harmony
with each other and the maximum of
| efficiency and economy in operation
| is to be secured. 1t was thought un-
wise to disturb existing provisions of
the law at that time. Now that the
| new system has been in successful
/ operation for more than five years,
| and the Budget Bureau has been firm
| ly established as the chief agency
| through which the President meets
his responsibilities as general man
| ager, it is believed that the time has
| come for consideration of the proposal
| to abolish certain, if not all, Of these
| other agencies of general administra-
] ton and transferring their duties TO
| the Budget Bureau.
VIII Concentrate Responsibility.
DR.. Willoughby's report cites the
| advantages Of such action as follows:
1t viii result in concentration
of responsibility for the performance
of a distinct function in a single
agency instead. of having it diffused
among a number of Independent or
coordinate agencies.
ministrative system of the Govern.
ment by diminishing the number of
separate administrative agencies, and
would simplify just SO much the
problem Of administrative reorganiza-
ton.
Such action would make possible
the achievement of substantial econ
omies by the reduction in overhead
and general costs, and the more ef-
fective utilization that can be had of
plant and personnel when they are
under a common direction and con-
troll
Regarding the proposed abolition Of
the Bureau of Efficiency, DIR. Will
loughby's report says that the signif1-
cant fact is that the function of this
service represents a complete duplica-
ton of that of the Bureau of the Bud
get. He explains that the latter, in
the discharge of its general duties Of
determining the recommendations
that it should make to the President
In respect TO the grant of funds to
the administrative services, is compell-
ed to, and does in fact, make de-
tailed inquiries into the manner in
which these services are organized
and conduct their business. Futher-
more, he stresses, the budget and ac-
counting act provides that the bureau,
acting on behalf of the President,
shall make studies of the entire or
ganization and business procedure of
| the several departments and estab-
lishments, and, on the basis Of such
studies, recommend action having for
its purpose to secure greater economy
and efficiency in the dispatch Of pub
lie business.
Functions of Two Are Same.
Dr. Willoughby concludes that it
is not so much a question Of the two
organizations duplicating each others
work as that the function or field of
activities of the two are the same,
and that in view of this increased eff
cheney, economy and simplificaion of
organization would result from merg-
ing the Bureau Of Efficiency with the
Bureau of the Budget.
Regarding the proposal to transfer
the general supply committee from
the Treasury Department to the
| Budget Bureau, DIR. Willoughby points
out that in co-ordinating and improv-
| ing the work having to do with pur-
chase, custody and utilization of sup
| plies the Budget Bureau has been in
| close cooperation with the general
| supply committee to such an extent
| that it lists the general supply COM
mittee as one of its co-ordinating
| agencies.
| The work of the supply committee
| has nothing to do with the essential
| function of the Treasury Department.
| Attachment of this service to the Bu-
reau OF the Budget as one of it's sub
| li.nA - L.