The Daily Alaska empire., 1949-08-01
legislature. not vet entitled to legislate.

legislature, not yet entitled to legislate This "Gruening Legislature appropriated moneys indiscrimnatey, and passed discrimnatory tax laws particularly aimed against the Alaska salmon industry Three these laws have landed in the courts and are unenforceabe denying the Territory badlyneeded moneys which it otherwise would have The Legislature created boards dominated by the Governor ana appropriated funds in huge amounts, some of them for boards which duplicate the functions of the Federal Government
 New tax laws imposed on Alaskans by the 1949 Legislature provide for net income tax o ten per cent of the Federal to be paid by Alaskans and all persons employed in Alaska, even seamen on vessels temporarily in Alaska waters; rural property tax of per cent one per cent tax on raw 1isn' ncresed resident and nonresident commercial 1sh ing license tax and one per cent tax on boats ana airpanes. Also there is new punchboard stamp tax tax on Public Accountants; more than quadrupied graduated tax on salmon traps; and law permitting Alaska cities to vote sales taxes of up to two per cent.
 Tn the years prior to Gruening's regime there was always surplus in the Territorial treasury Now there is huge deficit and money even to pay for imnortant functions such as education housing hos palization and old-age assistance The Territory IS insovent There is hardly enough to pay necessary running expenses
 The Alaska Board of Administration has had to freeze 645 498 % in appropriated moneys in order to save off financial disaster No audit of the books was made for years during the Gruening adminstra- tion and recently when an audit was at last oroereo the Territorial Treasurer was jailed for serious oe facations toaling more than $23 O0OO0 and there was serious misuse of funds in at least one other depart ment.
 Among the agencies and funds affected by the freeze order those for the Alaska Housing Authority to establish a housing program; reimbursement funds for school boards for interest paid on borrowed money revolving fund for Territorial veterans Community hos pital construction; Territorial retirement system AL aska Pioneers Home and the Fisheries Commission. Also there is lack of for Bus transportation; financial assistance to hospitals Territorial buildings the Alaska Library Statehood Commission; National Guard: Community fairs Pure Food and Drug Act; University of Alaska construction vocational re- mobilization the Commissioner of Educatons Advisory Commissions Field offices for the Department of Mines; Hospital construction survey, and for pro1essonal boards of optometry, pharmacy, medical examiners cosmetology chropractc dental examiners and basic sciences.
 All Alaska newspapers and periodicals with one exception have damned the present administration as deriment to Alaska. Because of the Governors eff forts provide political jobs and to multiply the tax burden existing industries businessmen seeking new fields going to tnnK LWlce Deiore eStdpilSlills themselves in Alaska Even with continued huge Federal spending for defense construction "The Last Frontier" is likely to remain just that-a huge un- developed Territory with only sixty thousand white inhabitants and thirty thousand Indians Eskimos and Aleuts.
 We should change date in The Sportsmans $ editorial Governor Gruening came to Alaska in 1859 instead of 1940