Recent Developments
NSF AND NASA APPROPRIATIONS: The House of Representatives was scheduled to have completed its consideration this week of H.R. 3666, the FY 1997 VA, HUD and Independent Agencies Appropriations Bill. Delays have pushed back final action on this $84.3 billion bill until Wednesday. There is speculation that a move may be made on the House floor to increase funding for the VA by making a 0.4% cut in all other accounts. This would reduce funding for NSF’s Research and Related Activities account, for example, by $10 million to approximately $2,412 million. Another amendment would reduce the agency’s budget for salaries and expenses by $9.1 million, shifting this money to NSF research activities. It is expected that an amendment will be offered to terminate U.S. funding for the space station. Senate consideration of this bill might be held up because of disagreements between Senate leaders about the over-all level of FY 1997 domestic spending.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY APPROPRIATION: “I’m not willing to go the extra mile they’re asking for” said House Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman John Myers (R-IN) earlier this week. Myers’ subcommittee is usually one of the first to complete action on its bill, but he is holding out for additional outlay money. Full House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bob Livingston (R-LA), who earlier steered over $1 billion more to Myers in budget authority, responded "...I don’t anticipate there’s any more money to give him.”
HELIUM RESERVE BILL: This week the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved an amended version of H.R. 3008, the Helium Privatization Act of 1996 (see FYI #79.) Under this Senate bill, the Interior Secretary “shall enter into appropriate arrangements with the National Academy of Sciences to study and report on whether such disposal of helium reserves will have a substantial adverse effect on U.S. scientific, technical, biomedical, or national security interests.” If it is found that helium disposal “will have a substantial adverse effect on the U.S. helium industry, the U.S. helium market or U.S. scientific, technological, biomedical, or national security interest, the Secretary shall make recommendations [to Congress], including recommendations for proposed legislation, as may be necessary to avoid such adverse effects.” It is not known when this bill will be considered by the full Senate. The House passed its bill on April 30.
NATIONAL MEDAL OF SCIENCE RECIPIENT: On June 10, President Clinton announced that APS Past-President C. Kumar N. Patel, Vice President for Research at the University of California-Los Angeles, will receive the National Medal of Science. The White House states that the award is given “for his invention of the carbon dioxide laser, a major scientific and technological breakthrough which continues to be an important tool in manufacturing, medical treatment, scientific investigations and materials processing. His carbon dioxide laser also led to the creation of new generations of lasers and laser systems.” Patel and other recipients of the National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology will be honored at a White House ceremony later this summer.
U.S. SPACE LAUNCH STRATEGY: A June 12 hearing of a House science subcommittee reviewed U.S. and international launch capabilities. Considerable concern was expressed by some subcommittee members and witnesses about the international treaty governing launches, one member saying early in the hearing that “this is about fair trade.” NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin set the stage for the importance of this issue, declaring “access to orbit today costs roughly $10,000 for each pound of payload. This enormous expense is at least ten times too much, and is choking off the scientific and commercial potential of our national space program.”
PHYSICS AND GOVERNMENT WWW SITE: A reminder of our address: http://www.aip.org/gov
