TREASURY DEPARTMENT APPROPRIATION BILL, 1923. HEARINGS CONDUCTED BY THE SUBCOMMITTEE, MESSRS. MARTIN B. MADDEN (CHAIRMAN), WILLIAM S. VARE, WALTER W. MAGEE, JOSEPH W. BYRNS, AND JAMES A. GALLIVAN, IN CHARGE OF TREASURY DEPARTMENT APPROPRIATION BILL FOR 1923, ON THE DAYS FOLLOWING, NAMELY: MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1921. TREASURY DEPARTMENT. STATEMENTS OF HON. ANDREW W. MELLON, SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY, ACCOMPANIED BY MR. S. P. GILBERT, JR., THE UNDERSECRETARY, MR. ELIOT WADSWORTH, ASSISTANT SECRETARY, AND MR. W. G. PLATT, CHIEF CLERK. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Secretary, for the first time, I suppose, or at any rate, for a great many years, we have divided the appropriation bills by departments, and all of the activities in the Treasury Department will be carried in the pending bill. I thought, in view of that, it might be well if you would give us a review, as comprehensively as you can, of the activities of the department, what is being done to make for greater economy, to reduce the forces to a prewar basis, and to make any other statement you may think will be of use in the consideration of the problems that are before us, which all involve a greater degree of economy in the conduct of the Government than has been the case for the last few years. Secretary MELLON. All of that has been covered in some detail in the annual report which I submitted to Congress last week, and which is now available. There has been opportunity to economize chiefly in the way of decreasing the force in most of the bureaus, except the Internal Revenue Bureau. I do not know that there is any other where an increase has been called for. In the Internal Revenue Bureau they have been taking on new men for the extra work necessary to increase the production, or rather, to dispose of the accumulated unsettled tax claims. That congestion is very great, and we have been planning to systematize the work, to put in better methods in the administration of the bureau. It is not altogether completed, but they are working in that way, and we have increased the production to some extent; but in doing that it has been necessary to increase the force, and, as you may have observed, there has been an increase asked for in the appropriation for the Internal Revenue Bureau. The CHAIRMAN. Yes; I know that. Secretary MELLON. Generally, in the other offices, the appropriations requested as necessary will be somewhat less, and the aggregate estimates are not a great deal but slightly less. In the case of a few of the heads of bureaus and offices some increases in salary are recommended, but that represents a limited number of cases. 3 |