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Here's the latest I've found about the situation surrounding 1999 NIH appropriations. Nothing new about the NIH numbers in particular. Just that the monster omnibus bill containing combined outstanding 1999 appropriations for government operations to the tune of $500 billion, which congressional leaders and the White House put together and agreed to in last mimute negotiations last week, and which supposedly includes a lot of pork, is scheduled for a vote tomorrow (Tuesday). I presume the point of last week's negotiations and the agreement was to prevent any presidential veto, which would have put the bill back into Congress's lap and further postponed adjournment. The package contains about 4000 pages, and some members of Congress and/or their aides still don't know what all is in it, according to AP Newswire. "Ironically, the mammoth bill includes provisions dealing with the government's Paperwork Reduction Act. Only a few copies of the bill were available Monday, and none were provided for the public." There may be a debate on whether to put the bill to a voice vote. A voice vote has the advantage that the Congressmen who have already gone home as well as those remaining behind will escape the responsibility of having their absence or vote put on record. Perhaps they should be allowed to leave behind wind-up maniken likenesses so as to make up a quorum. That's how business in Congress is done when they're down to the wire. As someone once said, when you put things off to the last minute, they only take a minute. I saw another article saying that many voters are unhappy with their Congressmen, yet the latter will run for re-election unopposed. God save us. Phil Tompkins Hoboken NJ age 60/dx 1900