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department disregard the function and look to incidentals; they suggest that any engineering and construction be done by the new department, and that instruction be given by the Bureau of Education.

The National Chamber at the last annual meeting adopted resolutions advocating creation of a Federal Highway Commission, to perform all of the federal government's activities respecting improved roads. The function of such a commission is to decide upon highly important matters of policy, which are not primarily problems of engineering or construction, and to utilize engineering ability in carrying out the policies that are adopted. Being responsible for the results attained in carrying out these policies, the highway commission should, as a matter of good organization in business or in government, have control of the agency that executes the work.

Responsibility for performance of governmental functions should be made more definite, not dispersed. If the execution of engineering or construction work is placed in one department and a purpose to which the work contributes is in another department, there will inevitably be a diminution of responsibility upon the official charged with the accomplishment of the purpose. Giving him his own professional assistants may mean some duplication but the advantage to the public in having a public duty expeditiously and properly fulfilled, and of having some person whom it can hold exactly responsible for any failure, far outweigh any such duplication and makes it really of academic rather than of practical importance.

An error may also be made by some advocates of the new department when they refer to departments of public works in foreign countries; for they infer that such departments have charge of all construction and engineering performed on government account. The facts appear otherwise. It seems that when important functions are to be performed even those countries having departments of public works organize agencies suited to the purpose to be accomplished. Thus, Belgium has a ministry of public works but also a ministry of railways, marine, posts and telegraphs. France has a ministry of public works but when it had to consider rehabilitation of an area devastated by war it created a separate ministry of reconstruction. Although Argentina has a department of public works it has placed administration of the state-owned pertoleum field in the hands of a special commission. In this connection it is noticeable that the advocates of a new department in the United States do not apparently suggest inclusion of such an important agency involving engineering as the valuation division of the Interstate Commerce Commission, engaged in making valuations of the railroads of the country.

If adjustment of the kind in question is desirable for the United States, its value was undoubtedly especially observable during the war. Although the President had authority, under the Overman Act, to take practically the same action as is now urged, he would seem not to have undertaken it, presumably because a showing that would justify his action was not forthcoming.

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To create a Department of public works and define its powers and duties.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the name of the executive department now designated as "Department of the Interior" be changed to the name of "Department of Public Works," and that the head thereof shall continue to be a member of the Cabinet under the official designation "Secretary of Public Works," to be chosen and confirmed as in such case now provided by law, except that when the present occupant shall vacate that office all subsequent occupants shall by training and experience be qualified to administer the affairs of the department and to evaluate the technical principles and operations involved in the work thereof.

SEC. 2. That all the powers, functions, and duties, executive and administrative staff, personnel and property, and all bureaus and other instrumentalities now vested in, a part of, or belonging or subordinate to, the Department of the Interior, be in like manner and to the same extent continued in the Department of Public Works, except as hereinafter provided.

SEC. 3. That the following bureaus and other instrumentalities now subordinate to the Department of the Interior shall, with all their functions, personnel and property, and all boards, commissions, or agencies pertaining thereto, be transferred as herein specified:

A. The Patent Office to the Department of Commerce.

B. The Bureau of Pensions to the Department of the Treasury.

C. The Bureau of Education to the Department of Labor.

D. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Board of Indian Commissioners to the Department of Labor: Provided, That the engineering and construction work and the land and mineral surveys now performed by, or under the direction of, the Bureau of Indian Affairs shall be prosecuted under the Department of Public Works.

E. The Saint Elizabeth's Hospital and the Freedman's Hospital, to the Public Health Service, Department of the Treasury.

F. The Columbia Institution for the Deaf and the Howard University, to the Bureau of Education, Department of Labor.

SEC. 4. That the following bureaus and other instrumentalities now subordinate to the departments in each case designated, with all their functions, personnel, and property, and all boards, commissions, or agencies pertaining thereto, be transferred to the Department of Public Works.

A. The Supervising Architect's Office, now subordinate to the Department of the Treasury.

B. The Construction Division of the United States Army, River and Harbor Improvements, the Mississippi River Commission, and the California Débris Commission, now subordinate to the Department of War: Provided, That the engineer officers of the United States Army, detailed to the nonmilitary duties having to do with river and harbor improvements, the Mississippi River Commission, and the California Débris Commission, shall be detailed by the Secretary of War to like duties under the Department of Public Works for such period,

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not exceeding two years, as the Secretary of Public Works may find necessary to make gradual transfer of said improvements and instrumentalities to civil administration without detriment to the public interest; that upon such transfer to civil administration, said engineer officers of the United States Army shall be returned to military duties: And provided further, That for the purpose of acquiring instruction, training, and experience, members of the Corps of Engineers, United States Army, may, with the consent and approval of the Secretary of Public Works, be detailed by the Secretary of War for temporary duty under the Department of Public Works and shall be assigned by the Secretary of Public Works to such duties as may be deemed best adapted to the purposes of such detail.

C. The Coast and Geodetic Survey and the Bureau of Standards, now subordinate to the Department of Commerce.

D. The Bureau of Public Roads and the Forest Service, now subordinate to the Department of Agriculture.

SEC. 5. That all officers of the United States Army attached to the Department of Public Works shall retain their military rank and succession and receive the compensation, commutation, and cmoluments provided by law in the case of Army officers of the same rank not detached from regular Army service.

SEC. 6. That pending further action by Congress all personnel, appointments, tenure, and compensation under the Department of Public Works shall. except as otherwise provided herein, continue under the laws now in force in the several bureaus and other instrumentalities retained in or transferred to said department under this Act.

SEC. 7. That there shall be four Assistant Secretaries of Public Works appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, each of whom shall be specially qualified by training and experience for the particular services over which he may have jurisdiction, and who shall be removed from office only for inefficiency and for conduct detrimental to the service on charges duly made and adjudicated in accordance with law in such case provided or for age or physical or mental impairment, and that each of said Assistant Secretaries shall be paid a compensation of $7,500 per annum; that said Assistant Secretaries of Public Works shall be included within the scope of any civil-service retirement laws now or hereafter enacted by Congress and the regulations thereunder; that one Assistant Secretary shall have administrative jurisdiction over all matters of engineering design and construction by whatever bureau or other instrumentality of the department performed; that one Assistant Secretary shall have administrative jurisdiction over all architectural design and construction by whatever bureau or other instrumentality of the department performed; that one Assistant Secretary shall have administrative jurisdiction over all scientific work and surveys by whatever bureau or other instrumentality of the department performed; that one Assistant Secretary shall have administrative jurisdiction over all land and legal matters by whatever bureau or other instrumentality of the department performed; that said four Assistant Secretaries shall, under the direction of the Secretary of Public Works, coordinate and bring into efficient relation all of the functions included in this section to the end that the work of the department shall be harmoniously and most economically performed and administered.

SEC. 8. That all Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent with the terms of this Act are hereby repealed, and the Secretary of Public Works is authorized to perform any and all such acts and to make such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying the provisions of this Act into full force and effect.

[Appendix B]

OUTLINE OF ORGANIZATION

of the

DEPARTMENTS PRINCIPALLY AFFECTED

by

PROPOSAL FOR DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Secretary: Has supervision of public business relating to public lands and surveys, Reclamation Service, Alaskan railroad, Bureau of Mines, Geological Survey, national parks, Indians, patents for inventions, and pensions and bounty lands.

First Assistant Secretary: Specially charged with supervision of the business of the General Land Office, applications for rights of way over public lands for railroads, telephone and power lines, etc., national park matters, and Indian affairs affecting disposal of public domain. ·

Assistant Secretary: Has general supervision with respect to patents, pensions, Indian affairs, and

education.

Assistant to the Secretary: Has general supervision with reference to the Reclamation Service, the Bureau of Mines, all matters relating to the territories of Alasaka and Hawaii, and construction and operation of the Alaskan railroad.

Chief Clerk: Deals with matters of personnel, supplies, etc.

General Land Office: Charged with the survey, management and disposal of the public lands, adjudication of conflicting claims relating thereto, the grant of railroad and other rights of way, issuance of patents for lands, etc.

Geological Survey: Classifies the public lands as mineral or agricultural, etc., examines the geological structure, mineral resources, and mineral products of the national domain, and collects information respecting activities in development of mineral resources in all parts of the country.

Reclamation Service: Undertakes the survey, construction and operation of irrigation works in the arid-land states.

Bureau of Mines: Investigates methods of mining, especially in relation to safety and prevention of accidents, treatment of ores and other mineral substances, use of explosives and electricity, and improvement of methods in production of petroleum and natural gas. It also tests and analyzes coals, ores and other substances which are acquired for use of the United States.

Alaskan Engineering Commission: Following legislative authority, the President appointed a commission of three engineers to locate, construct, operate or lease a railroad or railroads to connect the interior of Alaska with one or more of the open ports on the coast and placed general administration in the Department of the Interior.

War Minerals Relief Commission: Of temporary nature, having been appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, under statutory authority, to administer the law for relief to individuals on account of losses in producing or preparing to produce minerals for war purposes.

National Park Service: Administers the national parks. Maintenance, improvement, and protection of parks, and control of concessionaires operating utilities essential for the care of visitors are the duties of the office.

Office of Indian Affairs: Has general charge of the Indian tribes in the United States (except in Alaska), their education, lands, monies, purchase of supplies, and general welfare.

Board of Indian Commissioners: Really an independent advisory body, making reports to the Secretary of the Interior with regard to Indian affairs.

Patent Office: Administers the patent laws, grants letters of patent for inventions, registers trademarks, and hears conflicting claims with respect to patents and trade-marks.

Bureau of Education: Collects statistics and general information regarding the conditions and progress of education, advises state and local school officials on administration and improvement of schools, con

ducts schools in Alaska for native children, and engages in dissemination of information on various subjects, especially connected with education.

Pension Bureau: Examines and adjudicates claims arising under laws passed by Congress for pensions on account of service in the army or navy before October 6, 1917.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Secretary: Charged with promotion of agriculture in the broadest sense and formulates and establishes general policies to be pursued by the bureaus in the department.

Chief Clerk: Deals with matters of personnel, supplies, records of expenditures under appropriations, etc.

Solicitor: Legal adviser to the Secretary and the heads of the bureaus in the department and supervises all legal work performed in the different bureaus.

Office of Farm Management: Studies the farmers' economic problems with a view to reducing costs and increasing profits through better organization on the farm and a better adjustment of production to demands of the market.

Bureau of Animal Industry: Has charge of the department's activities in reference to the livestock industry, deals with control and eradication of diseases of animals, inspection, and quarantine of livestock, inspection of meat and meat food products, and animal husbandry and dairying.

Bureau of Plant Industry: Studies plant life n all its relations with agriculture.

Bureau of Soils: Investigates the relation of soils to climate and organic life, studies texture and composition of soils, prepares maps of soils, etc.

Bureau of Entomology: Studies insects in their economic relation to agriculture and agricultural products and to the health of man and animals.

Bureau of Biological Survey: Has charge of the department's activities with reference to the control and conservation of wild birds and animals and the investigation of their relations to agriculture. Bureau of Crop Estimates: Collects, compiles. interprets and publishes statistical data regarding agriculture.

Bureau of Markets: Obtains and disseminates information regarding marketing and distribution of farm products.

Weather Bureau: Forecasts the weather, gives warnings of storms, frosts and floods, operates its own telephone and telegraph lines, transmits marine intelligence for the benefit of commerce and navigation, etc.

Bureau of Public Roads: Administers the law under which the federal government cooperates with the states in providing funds for improvement of post roads and roads in national forests. It studies systems of road management and of road building, details engineers to assist local officials in building model roads, etc.

Forest Service: Administers the national forests, studies forest conditions and methods of forest utilization, investigates the mechanical and physical properties of woods and the processes employed in the manufacture of forest products, and gathers information concerning the needs of the various wood-using industries and the relation of forests to the public welfare generally.

Bureau of Chemistry: Is concerned with investigations to develop violations of the Food and Drugs Act, with questions of agricultural chemistry of public interest, and with a variety of other chemical investigations which are referred to it from time to time.

Insecticide and Fungicide Board: Assists the Secretary of Agriculture in the enforcement of the insecticide law.

Federal Horticultural Board: Assists the Secretary in the enforcement of the plant quarantine act. Division of Publications: Edits manuscripts prepared by other parts of the department and in other ways prepares them for the printer. It likewise is in charge of circulation of agricultural information, directs the activities of the department in using agricultural exhibits and in distributing motion pictures for educational purposes.

Division of Accounts and Disbursements: Duties apparent from title. Is charged with disbursement of all public funds appropriated for the Department of Agriculture.

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