HJR 44 - POSTAGE STAMP HONORING ALASKA SALMON                               
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE KIM ELTON, PRIME SPONSOR, HJR 44, testified saying,            
 "This resolution, Mr. Chair, I think is a simple way and a free way           
 of raising the awareness of wild Alaska salmon, especially in the             
 domestic market place.  It will make it easier, I think, to educate           
 people who have some concerns, who think that all salmon is                   
 endangered.  I think that it has advantages to both the sport                 
 fishing industry by raising awareness of one of Alaska's most                 
 important and unique resources in the sport fishing industry.  I              
 think it also has value to the commercial fishing industry as                 
 anything that starts delineating the different species of wild                
 Alaska salmon I think is going to help in the marketing of salmon             
 in the Lower 48."                                                             
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN AUSTERMAN agreed, "Anytime we can get out and promote our            
 wild salmon, we'll be doing just exactly that and this is obviously           
 a good method of doing it."                                                   
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIS said, "Do people consider figures on stamps as           
 being something like a conservation (cause), like this is an                  
 endangered thing?  He also asked if specifically the term "wild"              
 would be used on the stamps.                                                  
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE ELTON replied, "The resolution says wild and natural           
 Alaska salmon.  I would hate to assume what the final stamp will              
 look like, what either the art work or the printing will be," and             
 agreed there is a misconception that wild salmon are endangered.              
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIS reiterated that he hoped this effort didn't              
 backfire to encourage conservation measures.                                  
                                                                               
 Number 173                                                                    
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE DAVIS moved HJR 173 out of committee.                          
                                                                               
 There were no objections.