Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 22, 1993                   TAG: 9309220013
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

SENATE DEFEATS EFFORT TO CANCEL SPACE STATION

The 59-40 tally to preserve the program came as the space agency told Clinton that it can have a permanently occupied station in orbit in 10 years for $19.4 billion.

Virginia Sen. Charles Robb voted to preserve the station; Sen. John Warner voted to kill it.

The new, reduced cost estimate was the most detailed since Clinton ordered the space agency to pare plans for the orbiting laboratory. The station, once called "Freedom" but temporarily rechristened "Alpha," had been estimated to cost $40 billion or more to build just a year ago.

Despite the lower price tag, Senate foes of the spacecraft called it a multibillion-dollar frill the country cannot afford. They insisted that it would offer few scientific benefits, and challenged the mostly conservative supporters of the spacecraft to vote to use the money for deficit reduction instead.

"Let's see if they want to cut spending, or if they simply want to act out a charade," said Sen. James Sasser, D-Tenn., who with Sen. Dale Bumpers, D-Ark., have been among the chief foes of the space station.

Supporters of the station said it could reap advances in medicine, electronics and other areas. And they said it was a valuable opportunity for cooperation with Russia, which may become a partner.

"It will enhance the situation there," said Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., a station supporter. "The fact that they will know one of the anchors will be scientific cooperation with the United States I think will be significant stabilizing force."

The money for the space craft was included in legislation providing $87.9 billion for space, veterans, housing, environmental and other programs for fiscal 1994, which begins Oct. 1.

The House approved $2.1 billion for the craft in its version of the bill in June, but only after opponents narrowly lost two attempts at killing the program.

The space agency's new $19.4 billion cost estimate does not include savings or a speeded-up construction schedule to be gained from possible Russian participation, or the $9 billion spent since 1984 on a multitude of discarded designs.

Earlier this month the space agency submitted a design for Alpha to the White House and fleshed it out Monday with a cost schedule. The Alpha plan depends on spending $2.1 billion a year for the project in the first five years and $8.9 billion from 1998 until September 2003.