House Panel Challenges Smithsonian

HOUSE PANEL CHALLENGES SMITHSONIAN
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Edward Wyatt]
Bluntly rejecting the Smithsonian Institution's defense of its recent television deal with Showtime Networks, the House Appropriations Committee yesterday demanded further information on the contract, which members of the committee have said limits access and "may be incompatible with the trust placed in the Smithsonian." The committee also cut $15 million from the Smithsonian's proposed budget and sought a cap on salaries. The committee's actions came one day after the Smithsonian's governing board asserted, in a letter to the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees its finances, that the deal did not restrict access to its collections, as claimed by critics. The letter also rebuffed the subcommittee's suggestion that it conduct public hearings on business ventures that affect access to its collections.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/11/arts/11smit.html
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* Smithsonian Salary Cap Passes Panel
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/10/AR200605...