Evening star., 1949-02-07
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creation of an Office of General
Services to supervise purchases
which would generally be decen-
tralized also-and other house
keeping" functions, and the oper-
alton of public buildings.
The commission said these sub
jects would be treated in later re-
ports.
/ Its plans on accounting are
said to include transfer a big part
of the work to the various depart
ments. cutting down the duties
of the General Accounting Office
"a Congressional pet-and set
ting up an Accountant General in
the Treasury.
Would Restore Leadership.
Prefacing its recommendations
regarding the executive agencies
the commission said:
The responsibility, the vigor of
executive leadership and the unity
of administration of the executive
branch as planned by the Consti-
tuition must be restored"
Most of 10 recommendations on
department management were de-
signed to tighten up organization
and responsibility and to give de-
partment heads adequate author
lty for carrying out their jobs.
The commission recommended
that:
The many executive agencies be
grouped into departments as near
ly as possible by major purposes,
and that the same aim be followed
in grouping subsidiary bureaus
within the departments.
Each department head receive
authority from Congress to organ
ize his department, to place him
Lin control. He should have the
power to allocate funds appro-
priated for a given purpose to the
agency of his department he be-
lieves can best carry out the pur-
pose.
Heads Should Appoint.
"To lay the foundations of
authority and discipline depart
ment heads should appoint their
staff officials and as a rule. bureau
chiefs, with proper consideration
to the promotion of career en-
ployes.
Department heads must have
clear responsibility under the
President for their departments;
there should be a clear line of
authority" reaching down through
the organization and no subor-
dinate should have authority in
dependent from that Of his
superior.
Department heads must have ad-
equate staff assistance to achieve
efficiency and economy.
The report dealt at length with
the Office of the President. In
connection with the proposal to
give the individual agencies per-
sonnel administrative functions
now discharged by the Civil Serv-
ice Commission, the Hoover group
recommends that an Office of per-
sonnel be set up under the Presi-
dent, and that the director of this
unit be head of the Civil Service
Commission. .>a--.e>
This particular matter is to be
treated in later reports.
New Presidential Secretary.
The commission also wants a
new staff secretary to the Presi-
dent, who would fill want which
is described in this way:
AT present there is no place in
the Presidents Office to which the
President can look for a current
summary of the principal issues
with which he may have to deal in
the near future, nor Is a current
summary available on problems
that have been assigned to his ad-
visers, his staff agencies or the
heads of departments and agen-
cies."
The commission says the staff
secretary should not be an adviser
on any matter or policy but a ca
reer public servant.
On the subject Of the Budget
Bureau - which would become
the Office of the Budget-the
commission says that agency "has
developed into the Presidents
largest and most important staff
agency" A task force committee
of the commission recommended
that the Budget Bureau be trans
ferred back to the Treasury. But
the commission did not adopt
this, preferring that the office
should be strengthened "as the
managerial arm of the President"
Balance Sought.
The commission says it's later
recommendations on the Office of
the Budget will be intended to
achieve a well rounded and
balanced" agency, emphasizing
particularly more comprehensive
program for the improvement OF
management.
In dealing further with the
presidential Office, the commission
recommended:
That the Council of Economic
Advisers be replaced by an Office
of the Economic Adviser, with a
single head.
That the National Security
Council and the National Security
Resources Board. with their re-
spective stats, be made. formally
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