Federal research

This paper reports that, so far, Congress has provided about $1.3 billion toward construction of the Superconducting Super Collider and is now considering the President's request for another $650 million for fiscal year 1993. GAO testified that several factors could delay the project, increase its cost to the U.S. government, or reduce potential benefits. GAO believes that, as the investment increases and construction advances, it is more likely that project funding will continue even if costs increase and other countries do not help pay for it. Accordingly, correcting the problems cited by GAO and obtaining firm funding commitments from other nations are necessary to protect the U.S. investment in the project. Continuation of federal funding could also be made contingent on the Department of Energy putting in place an integrated cost and schedule system, assessing the impact on the domestic economy of using foreign subcontractors, and obtaining firm commitments for contributions for other nations by a certain date