The Daily Alaska empire., 1945-03-15

Galleryites were treated to an add ed attraction yesterday afternoon when the Governor of Alaska, Ernest Gruening, appeared before the AL aska Senate in support of House Bill No. 35, the Fisheries Commis- sion and graduated trap tax mea- sure which was the subject of a Senate Committee of the Whole hearing.
 Gov. Gruening led off his re- marks by declaring that even before he had assumed his duties as Gov ernor of the Territory, he had been made aware of a mounting pressure against the fish trap situation in Alaska fishing waters-a feeling virtually unanimous among fisher men,
 : Inasmucn as the graduated tax may tend to diminish absentee ownership and make trap sites available to those groups now most outspcken against them, it may take some of the heat off, the con- tinued use of traps the Governor argued.
 If some modifying measure, such as the bill under consideration, is not enacted now, Gov. Gruening concluded, an alternative might be that some day the Territory may be forced to take over all fish traps and go into the business - deriving not just tax revenues, but the returns from a $25,00o,000 annual business.
 Would not that tbe socialism, Gov. Gruening was asked by Senator Allen Shattuck; to which he re- piled: "Yes, but it is possibility
 In outlining his stand on the fist trap question, the Governor declar- ed that he is not, at present, in fa- vor of abolition of traps, but he fears that unless some temporizine step is taken, their abolition will re- suit.
 He explained that, being in sym pathy with the feelings of the fisher men, yet not able to overlook tht arguments on the other side of tht question, he had turned to the Fisf and Wildlife Service and it's direct. or, Dr. Ira Gabrielson, as an impar. tial source of information. Int Fish and Wildlife Service, the Gov ernor continued, hold fish traps tc be an essential type of gear-but also expressed the thought that tho Territory has for many years ne glected it's opportunities to regulate the character of the ownership oi the traps in it's waters.
 Absentee Ownership The Governor declared himself against attempting to cripple any industry, but he fails to see how House Bill No 35 can possible ser iously injure the canned salmon in- dustry. The bill will not, he said abolish fish traps but will enable the Territory to derive added rev. enue from them and at the same time diminish that feature of their use which is most objectionable - absentee ownership.
 Remarking that the sl 500 license fee the bill would apply to traps owned by a single operator above fifty, Gov. Gruening pointed. out that only 10 of the 434 traps in the Alas kan waters would be subject to that tax bracket. For it's own protection the Governor urged, the canned sal- mon industry should be willing to meet the Territory halfway and go step in direction that would ease the growing public sentiment against the present trap set up. The Fish and Wildlife Service (which is charged with regulating Alaska's $ Fisheries in the interest of conser- yation, has no opposition to the bill proposed, the Governor continued and added his own opinion, that the measure is very important, but not drastic nor confiscatory.
 Dummy Owners
 The Fisheries Commission provis- ions of the bill, he stated, were in-