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instance, in glancing through the text of the revised bill he noticed that the earlier requirement for a building on the Mall of no less than 400,000 square feet had been dropped, and Senator Inouye acknowledged that the Secretary's earlier expressions of concern on this matter had been addressed.  Mr. Adams went on to say that this was a fundamental and very important contribution to these discussions because the question of scale is one that comes to the heart of the Regents' determination of priorities.  In discussion the Regents expressed the view that the large amount of material Senator Inouye had provided would require time to digest and to verify the substantive changes they are said to contain, before the Regents could be expected to take a reasonable position; accordingly, after exploring with Senator Inouye the prospective timetable for action on his bill in the Senate and the House, it was

VOTED that the Board of Regents authorizes the Secretary to continue with negotiations on behalf of the Board with the Chairman of the Select Committee on Indian Affairs with respect to further revision of S. 1722.  The Board also refers the question of the Regents' approval of the ultimate proposal to its Executive Committee, with instructions that the Executive Committee is to report to the Board in June and the Board may be asked to vote by mail or at a specially convened meeting on or before July 1.

[underline]NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM EXTENSION PLANNING[/underline]

The Secretary reported that he has appointed a small internal working group, under the chairmanship of Dr. Martin Harwit, Director of the National Air and Space Museum, to develop a program of requirements for an extension to the Museum.  It is expected that an outside firm will be engaged to assist the group in preparing a statement of objectives and requirements which will include the purposes of the new facility, its thematic identity, its components, and its relationship to the existing Museum on the Mall and other Smithsonian units.  A report is anticipated in time for the September 1988 meeting of the Board of Regents.

[underline]SMITHSONIAN TROPICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE AND THE PANAMANIAN SITUATION[/underline]

Mr. Adams reported on the status of operations of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and noted that, while there had not been to date any major impacts on day-to-day operations in Panama, concern is growing over the long term effects of that country's instability.  The Smithsonian's relations in Panama continue to be very good and there has been no harassment whatsoever.  While certain administrative problems have been encountered, the Institution's major investment in tropical biology in Panama, its obligations under international treaties, and the number of significant projects under way there suggest that the Smithsonian should continue to make every effort to overcome obstacles in the short run and need not contemplate any redirection or cutback in research activities for the foreseeable future.