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deletion of one of the four collection storage bays. Inasmuch as a short-fall of $2.5 million still remained, the Regents' Executive Committee was requested and agreed to authorize on behalf of the Board the expenditure of unrestricted trust funds in this amount to permit award of a contract (without the fourth storage bay). The attached letter was then forwarded to key Congressional committee chairmen.

Several days later, the Institution learned that Mr. Yates was concerned that the project should move forward as originally planned. Through his efforts, as well as others, the House and Senate conference committee agreed to provide an additional amount of $5 million to the Institution's FY 1981 appropriation for the Support Center project. The Conference Report stated:

-The managers were distressed to learn that the 4 bay support facility for which construction funds were provided in fiscal 1980 could not be built for less than $7,000,000 more than was available. The managers were informed that a 3 bay facility could be built within available funds if the Smithsonian used $2,500,000 of its private funds to augment the $20,500,000 appropriation available.

-Rather than sacrifice the badly needed space, the managers have chosen to appropriate $5,000,000 which, along with the $2,500,000 the Smithsonian had planned to use for construction of a 3 bay facility, will be adequate to build the desired 4 bay facility.

The President signed the FY 1981 Appropriation bill on December 12, 1980, and arrangements have been made to have the $5.0 million transferred to the General Services Administration.