HD68 - Interim Report: The Secretarial System in Virginia


Executive Summary:
The Executive Branch of the Commonwealth has been organized since 1972 using a secretarial system. The Governor's secretaries—currently eight in all—assist the Governor in both the policy and management functions of the Executive Branch. Each secretary oversees agencies in a functional area of State government and acts to coordinate and manage their activities through such actions as resolving interagency disputes and preparing a comprehensive budget. Secretaries also provide policy leadership, solve problems, develop legislative proposals, and perform public relations/information functions. The secretaries are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the General Assembly. They are often referred to collectively as the Governor's "Cabinet."

Item 14G of the 1996 Appropriation Act (Chapter 912) directed the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to conduct a "follow-up study of its 1984 assessment of the secretarial system." This study also addresses the issues raised in the 1995 JLARC interim report on the Department of Environmental Quality "on the role of cabinet secretaries in internal agency management." A copy of the study mandate appears in Appendix A.

This interim report presents summary information on the background, creation, and evolution of the secretarial system. JLARC will complete its full report in time for the 1998 Session of the General Assembly. Summary information on JLARC's study plan is provided at the end of this report.