I AM PLEASED today to sign the Reorganization Act of 1945, for I believe that in this Act the Congress has established a procedure which should lead to substantial improvements in the organization and management of the Government.
Under the authority of the Act, I shall undertake a systematic review of the Government agencies with a view to regrouping their functions in the most efficient and economical manner and abolishing such functions or agencies as may not be necessary.
The Director of the Bureau of the Budget has been instructed to obtain the recommendations of all departments and establishments covered by the Act and to take the lead in preparing the necessary reorganization plans for my consideration. He will work with the Director of War Mobilization and Reconversion insofar as the reorganization proposals relate to the reconversion of the war agencies.
While I anticipate that this Act will result in some reduction of administrative expenditures in the agencies affected by reorganization plans, I do not consider it probable that we will generally save as much as 25 percent, as suggested in the Act. I wish to point out, also, that administrative expenditures are only a small proportion of the cost of Government. Substantial savings in Government expenditures can come only from reductions in the Governmental programs themselves, and these are made as a rule through the normal budgetary and appropriations processes, not through reorganization action.
The results of reorganization will be evident primarily in the increased effectiveness of Government operations. Regrouping and consolidation to bring together those agencies having related purposes will lead to a greater consistency in the policies of the agencies and better coordination of their programs in operation. This should mean also a simpler and clearer relation between the agencies of the Government and the public. Through these means, the Act will enable us better to adapt the Government for carrying out its responsibility of serving the people.
Note: The Reorganization Act of 1945 is Public Law 263, 79th Congress (59 Stat. 613).
Harry S Truman, Statement by the President Upon Signing the Reorganization Act of 1945. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/229640