[194]

Reforms and rotation in office
Further information: Spoils system
Jackson's administration believed that Adams's had been corrupt and one of Jackson's first acts as president was to initiate investigations into all executive departments.[195] The investigations revealed that $280,000 (equivalent to (equivalent to $7,100,000 in 2021) today) was stolen from the Treasury, and the reduction in costs to the Department of the Navy saved it $1 million (equivalent to $25,400,000 in 2021).[196] One of the people caught in his investigation was the Treasury Auditor Tobias Watkins, a personal friend of Adams' who was found guilty of embezzlement.[197][196] In the first year of his term Jackson asked Congress to tighten laws on embezzlement, revise laws to reduce tax evasion, and pushed for an improved government accounting system.[198]
Jackson implemented a principle he called "rotation in office" by enforcing the Tenure of Office Act, signed by President Monroe in 1820, that limited appointed office tenure and authorized the president to remove and appoint political party associates. The previous custom had been for the president to leave the existing appointees in office, replacing them through attrition.