The Wrangell sentinel., 1946-06-14
RIVERS GIVES REPORT ON REGENT RATE HEARING
 IN WASHINGTON. D. c.
8y Att'Y Gen. Ralph RiTers-

A
 The U. S Maritime Commission rate hearing which I attended in
 Washington. D. C.. was a eontinu- anee of. the case which was started last November at Seattle. The Peti- tioner, War Shipping Administra- uon, had directed the steamship companies as it's agents to carry the i burden of proving the need of an in- i crease in freight tariffs as a pre- i requisite to the return of the sbips to the companies for private opera l ton. Wages and other costs had gone up, labor showdown practices had crept in. and the ships had gotten badly run down because of intensive war use.
 As | reported after the Seattle hearing, the companies introduced exhibits showing costs of operation in 1859; postulated an equal d. mount of traffic for I946: and pro- Jected cost estimates based on 1945 wage and other price levels. The companies then measured 1889 rev- enue against those projected costs and concluded that freight rates would have to be raised about lO0&e to secure them compensable returns on their respective invest ments. This would have raised Alas ka.s freight bill at the rate of a. bout $S,000,000 a year.
 As you know, this created a crisis for Alaska. then the steamship com- pany executives admitted that il lO0% increase in rates would be ruinous To all concerned. The De- yelopment Board retained David scoll. highly qualified attorney who had been connected with form el Alaska rate hearings and who had previously fought for lower rates to Alaska. Acting through Mr. Scoll and with the help of the Gov ernOr and the Delegate. the Develop ment Board succeeded:
 l. In getting continuation of the case until last month This permit ted 0PA to complete it's Alaska sur vey, and enabled Don O'Conner to act effectively as Aalskas econom- ist at the hearing
 ?. In prevailing upon the Recon version Director to cause VISA to continue the operation al existing rates beyond the original March go deadtine-this at a saving to Alas ka shlppers and consumers of about three-quarter5 fof a million dollars per month since that time
 3. In prevailing upon VISA 10 make it's own analysis based on l945 experience in lieu of the guess work which the companies had in- troduced at the Seattle hearing.
 In addition to credit as a member of the Alaska Development Board, the Governor deserves personal ere dit for invoking his topflight con- tact9 and his know-how in dealing with Washington, D. C., and for re- Cruiting such able men to do the mitigating.
 What looked like an immediate disaster last November does not now look so black VISA will likely op- crate the ships at existing rates for another siV months at least, during which time the postwar turmoil might abate to some extent and some evidence of stabilization make Ian appearance
 One of the reasons why VISA is not now so reluctant to continue the operation is that it's own analysis, based on actual 1945 experience, shows that about a 159o increase in freight rates and fares would have entirely covered the 1945 op- eration. Of course, the VISA andy sis gave the operation credit for the equivalent of freight charges on Government cargo and fares for per sonnel transported, the same as if the Government had been patroniz- ing a private carrier. It also gave credit for hauling the U. S. mail, etc., thus showing that the Govern ment lost a comparatively small a. mount of money during 1945 in the Alaska trade. Accordingly, if it were not for stoppages thus far caused by labor troubles, the prognosis for 1916 would not be too bad How eVer the management portion of the Alaska operation shares with labor in showing no great standards of efficiency, and the consumer has been paying for marked inefficiency. For instance, MT. Skinner, of Alaska Steamship Co.,, who is new to the