New York State Governor Nathan L. Miller Board of Estimate and Control Report Files

Legislation of 1921 established a Board of Estimate and Control and directed it to conduct a survey of all state departments, offices, and institutions to determine where waste and duplication of effort existed. The Board was then to recommend improvements to each agency or recommend to the legislature that agencies or functions be consolidated or discontinued.

The legislation also directed that agency budget requests be submitted to the Board for examination and revision; the Board was to file with the legislature annually a recommended budget.

Further 1921 legislation abolished the State Printing Board and assigned all of its functions and duties to the Board of Estimate and Control.

This series consists mainly of typescript studies or "surveys" made by Board employees concerning particular state agencies or institutions. These were copies directed to the Governor, a member of the board.

This series includes surveys of: Motion Picture Commission, Banking Dept., Treasurer, State Engineer and Surveyor, Dept. of Education, Dept. of State, Dept. of Public Works, Dept. of Health, State Museum, State Library, Dept. of Prisons (exclusive of industries), industries at various state prisons, Dept. of Highways, and Dept. of Farms and Markets.

The surveys generally provide: general description of agency including legal provisions, functions, and operations; products or services; receipts and expenditures for past year and appropriations for following year; recommendations for improvements and reorganization; and description of each division and bureau, providing: legal provisions, details on functions and methods of operation, titles and salaries of employees, receipts and expenditures. The amount of detail in each section varies greatly from one survey to another.

The series also includes four other related reports: 1) report on study of state land holdings; 2) summary and recommendations for 1922 appropriations bill; 3) memoranda concerning surveys of several agencies and functions, printing costs and laws, and related matters; and 4) partial transcript of hearings of 1922 investigation into the management and operations of the State Institute of Applied Agriculture on Long Island.

13682-78BSeries Accretion 13682-78B, Governor Nathan L. Miller Central Subject and Correspondence Files, originally included this series and contains additional records relating to reorganization of state government during Miller's administration.

This series was separated out by Archives staff from Series A0584, General Correspondence Files (Governor Miller).

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of the material.