The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1951-02-01

CONTRACTS
ARE AIRED
House Committee Of Whole
Hears Both Sides of
Controversy
ABy Bob DeArmOnd)

Any DOV DCfAA hlOlluJ
Members of the House of Repre-
sentatives, and a number of Sem
ators, heard good deal about
printing and about Territorial bid
laws during a two-hour hearing on
the contract for printing the 1851
Session Laws yesterday afternoon.
At the end of the hearing they
took no action on the matter what
ever, apparently needing the as
sertions of Attorney General j.
Gerald Williams and Attorney H.
l.. Faulkner that the Legislature
has no power to act and that the
proper place to take the complaint
was the District Court.
The entire controversy Steamed
from contracts let by the Auditor
for printing the legislative journals
and the Session Laws. The con-
tracts were let to the Empire Print
ing Company, although the Journal
Printing Company Of Ketchikan.
headed by w. L. Baker. had entered
lower bids.
Bids Rejected
The Journal Printing Company's
bid for printing the journals was
rejected on the grounds that 1t
was not a bid but counter offer
which included mimeographing in
stead of printing the advance
sheets.
The same company's bid for
printing the Session Laws was re-
jected by the Auditor on the
grounds that the bidder Gould
not comply with a requirement that
the printed advance sheets be deliv-
cred within 48 hours after receipt
of the laws.
The main issue yesterday was the
latter contract, upon which the
Journal Printing c., bid 1920 and
the Empire bid $1,000.
w. L. Baker, head of the former
company, told the committee that
his shop could do work cheaper
than some others, that he felt
printing shops outside of Juneau
were Disseminated against by the
48-hour requirement and that he
would have saved the Territory
so percent on the two contracts.
Challenges Opinion
Baker challenged the opinion Of
Attorney General j. Gerald Will
Jams, that the Auditor was not
bound by law to award the con-
tract to the low bidder
This challenge was repeated by
Bakers attorney, Mrs. Mildred Her
mann, who followed him on the
stand.
Mrs. Hermann called it a curb
stone opinion" and said Williams
had not been in possession Of all
OF the facts when he issued 1t. She
also implied that the Attorney Cen
eral has misinterpreted the law or
had used the wrong portions OF the
Alaska Code.
Vigorous Denial
These assertions were vigorously
! denied by Williams when he took
the stand.
He said that he was not "a
correspondence course lawyer and
could not interpret the law as Mrs.
Hermann wished it interpreted.
williams said he would stake his
reputation that the Legislature does
not have the power to break the
contract and added that the power
to do this rests with the courts
alone.
He told the Legislature that the
Territorial bid law at present COW
ers purchases only and does not
cover contracts in which both mat
erial and services are required. He
recommended that the Legislature
look into the advisability OF chang
ing this law.
Virtual Monopoly
Mrs. Hermann told the committee
that her client had been deprived
of a valuable property right when
his bid was rejected and added
Juneau has had a virtual monop-
oily of legislative printing since 1888
and that the Empire is the only