With the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930s, the governors again began to reassert authority. The Executive Reorganization Act was passed, returning the governor to a considerable level of appointment power. New state welfare and regulatory agencies were placed directly under the governor's control, greatly expanding his role in running the state and creating many patronage positions. The legislature responded by trying to create a merit system for public offices, but it was largely unable to effectively enforce it given the new scope of government agencies. The battle with the governor continued until 1941 when the legislature rescinded the Executive Reorganization Act and replaced it with the State Administration Act, which placed most of the government under the control of elected commissioners and reduced the governor's practical executive authority to commander of the militia and the executor of legislation. The matter was taken to the Indiana Supreme Court in the case of "Tucker v. State". The court ruled for the first time that the governor was in fact the Chief Executive of the state, and that the legislature could pass no law that infringed upon that right. The decision was a major shift from previous court decisions and granted governors a legal basis to resist future encroachment on their powers.