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criteria with which to evaluate such special factors as access to an active runway, flexibility in building configuration and space for future expansion, absence of vibration and noise problems (from aircraft and vehicular traffic), adequacy of existing and projected transportation network for visitor access as well as for artifact movement, and compatibility and non-interference with existing airport  site. . Local, regional and state support, and assurance of the permanence of Smithsonian occupation of the site will also be evaluated, and an assessment made of the potential numbers of visitors at each site. In addition, the contractor will evaluate such standard criteria s the availability and cost of the land, geological configuration, subsurface conditions, climatic characteristics, air quality and odors (as certain pollutants may have a deleterious impact on the long-term preservation of artifacts), zoning and easements, availability of utilities, and vital support services such as police and fire department.

The contractor will provide preliminary cost estimates for construction and operation at both sites and will assist in preparing a comparative report on financial feasibility of construction and operations at both sites. A preliminary site evaluation report will be available for the September Board of Regents' meeting, and the final report will be completed by December 1989.

[[underlined]] LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS AND ISSUES [[/underlined]] 

The Regents were provided with brief summaries of bills introduced thus far in the First Session of the 101st Congress in which the Smithsonian is named or implicated (see the list below). Mr. Adams drew the Regents' attention to two items in particular. First, he noted that it was the strong opinion of the staff that the proposed revisions to the Federal Advisory Committee Act should not be applied to the Smithsonian because it is not an executive branch agency; in discussion the Regents agreed with this position. Secondly, the Secretary noted that the Indian Remains Reburial Act raises issues in which the Smithsonian has had a long term and vital, though unpopular, interest. The Secretary suggested that the current practice of taking up individual cases where the claim is essentially clear will not likely stand as the Institution's final position in a struggle that may go on for a long time.

Bills listed included:

Amendments to the Federal Advisory Committee Act - S. 444 Centennial Year of the National Zoo - H. J. Res. 171
Cooper-Hewitt Museum Expansion and Renovation - H. R. 218
De Soto Trail Commission Act of 1989 - S. 555
Indian Remains Reburial Act - H. R. 1124
(Related measures, not specifically naming the Institution, include H. R. 1381 and H. R. 1664)
National African-American Heritage Memorial Museum - H. R. 1570
National Air and Space Museum Expansion - H. R. 889
National Biological Diversity Conservation and Environmental Research Act - H. R. 1268
Smithsonian Numismatic Collection - H. R. 1480
World Environment Policy Act of 1989 - S. 201
World War II Memorial and Museum - H. R. 537; S. 160 (for memorial only)