In the Shadow of Wilson and Brownlow: Executive Branch Reorganization in the States, 1965 to 1987

Abstract

Between 1965 and 1987, the organization of the executive branch was overhauled in 22 states. One objective of this article is to expand the existing database and scholarship on this fourth wave' of state reorganization initiatives. Consequently, the origins, goals, processes, and results of these 22 comprehensive' reorganization initiatives are described and analyzed. second objective is to examine the intellectual foundation upon which these state reform efforts were built. As the rhetoric of these initiatives clearly shows,3 the principal administrative values, the structural and procedural objectives, and the positions taken on the proper (constitutional) roles of the legislature and chief executive can be traced to the works of Woodrow Wilson and the President's Committee on Administrative Management (the Brownlow Committee). 4 Since 1987 was the bicentennial of the U. S. Constitution (1787), the centennial year of Wilson's The Study of Administration (1887),[5] and the golden anniversary of the Brownlow Committee's Report on the President's Committee (1937),[61 this is a particularly appropriate time to reflect on the American political and administrative heritage through the looking glass provided by these state reform initiatives. This article is divided into four parts. First, the basic elements of the intellectual heritage provided by Wilson and Brownlow are outlined. Second, the application of that heritage in the states is examined. Specifically, data on the rhetoric (origin and goals) of the reform efforts, the process used to pursue the goals, and the results achieved in each state are presented. Third, the data on the 22 state reorganization initiatives are analyzed. Attention is focused on whether gubernatorial control over administration was expanded and whether improved effectiveness, efficiency, and economy (savings) were achieved through reorganization. Finally, the analysis of the 22 state reorganization initiatives is used to develop some reflections about the intellectual heritage which Wilson and Brownlow provided for American public administration.