Minnesota Self-Survey.

The self-survey of Minnesota government, 1955-1956, was deemed necessary after the 1955 legislature established a new salary schedule, to be effective July 1, 1955, but appropriated no new money to cover any additional costs. The new salary schedule could be adopted only if enough savings could be found through reorganization of state agencies to eliminate waste, duplication of effort, and inefficiency of services. Instead of hiring outside consultants to study the state government and make a report, Governor Orville Freeman decided Minnesota would conduct a self-survey using its own administrators, technicians, employees, and legislators. The Commissioner of Administration, Arthur Naftalin, directed the self-survey.

Operational task forces, one for each of 33 state agencies, were established. Most task forces had five members including a chairman (a budget examiner from the Administration Department who was familiar with that agency), an administrator from the agency, an employee of the agency, a technician from another agency of state government, and a state legislator. A policy committee wrote a standardized work manual that was used by all of the task forces. This work manual, comprising more than 160 questions with room left under each question for answers and notes, was arranged into three sections: personnel, salaries, and management; operating procedures; and long-term needs and prospects.

Operational task forces (see boxes 1-6) submitted their completed manuals and reports in July, 1956. During the spring and summer of 1956, ten functional task forces (see boxes 7-9) were established to survey general functions, correlating the data from all agencies that had been collected by the operational task forces. Their final reports were finished in October, 1956. Some additional task forces operated during 1958, 1959, and 1960.

While all the goals and the accomplishments of the self-survey are too numerous to mention here (see published reports in box 13), the primary goal of the survey was accomplished. The new pay scale was adopted for the 1957-1959 biennium. In addition, many felt that the survey made progress in six major areas: improved personnel management; better administrative procedures (computerization and central payroll, etc.); improved budgeting and central control; better structural organization; improved physical working conditions; and more systematic attention to planning.

From the guide to the Minnesota Self-Survey records, 1955-1960., (Minnesota Historical Society)