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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 10, 1981)
BThe Battalion Vol. 74 No. 160 12 Pages Serving the Texas A&M University community Wednesday, June 10, 1981 College Station, Texas USPS 045 360 Phone 845-2611 The Weather Today Tomorrow High 95 High 92 Low 77 Low 73 Chance of rain 30% Chance of rain. . . . . . . 40% M AS CASH" • Diners Club NOR EAST! 822-3731 List ruling due soon rom state By BERNIE FETTE Battalion Staff All that remains before a ruling is ; on whether the Texas A&M Board Hegents must release its list of pres- ential candidates is the attorney gen ial s rejection or approval of the opin- sn drafted by his opinion committee. Blhe drafted opinion is presently ring on Attorney General Mark Vhite’s desk awaiting action, Susan Jam son said Tuesday. Garrison is j|rman of the opinion committee. jl The Bryan-College Station Eagle in j (ebruary requested the list of candi- ! for the Texas A&M presidency, n the Board of Regents refused to se the list. White was asked to rule hether or not the list should be tble for publication under the > Open Records Act. really don’t know how long it will :fore he (White) sees it (the opin- ’ Garrison said. “It depends on his schedule. ” [ The Eagle is basing its case on similar Opens Records decisions by the attor- I py general, but the Board is claiming | H list is covered by an exception to the iThe regents have said they plan to BVe chosen anew University president by Sept. 1. ■five men known to be under con- ■pration for the post are: Dr. Arthur Sansen, president of Purdue Univer sity; Dr. Jack Freeman, senior vice Bncellor for administration at the Uni versity of Pittsburgh; Dr. Stephen B. Sample, executive vice president for cademic affairs at the University of ebraska-Lincoln; Dr. James McCo- as, president of Mississippi State Uni- Ihity; and Dr. Lawrence E. Fouraker, mier dean of the Harvard University raduate school of business. Texas A&M regents schedule special meeting in Dallas By JANE G. BRUST Battalion Staff The Texas A&M Board of Regents Thursday will hold a special meeting in Dallas primarily to discuss the sale of Permanent University Fund bonds. The regents will meet at 1:30 p.m. in the Republic National Bank Building. The special meeting was scheduled to discuss a variety of business items not coming under regular committee busi ness discussed prior to every regular meeting of the full Board. Regents will discuss the bond sale as well as a land purchase in closed ses sion. Two personnel appointments for Texas A&M University will also be dis cussed in closed session. Those appoint ments are for the positions of director of the Center for Education and Research in Free Enterprise, and member of the Board of Consultants of the Center for Education and Research in Free Enter prise. Also on the agenda is the considera tion of names for two residence halls on the Texas A&M campus. The modular dormitories currently under construc tion are scheduled to open with the be ginning of the fall semester. While the Board meets in closed ses sion, it’s also possible the regents will discuss the current status of the search for a University president. Following the regents’ May meeting. Board Chair man H.R. “Bum’ Bright said the selec tion process is not progressing as fast as he would like, but he still anticipates the selection by Sept. 1. Sources indicate at least two pres idential candidates have turned down the job offer, saying they’re not in terested in the position under the cur rent System organization. The controversial reorganization plan implemented in January 1980 stripped the University president of his authority over the extension services and experi ment stations and transferred that au thority to the System chancellor. The plan gave the president control of the University alone. Former President Jarvis Miller and Chancellor Frank W.R. Hubert clashed in the power struggle which resulted in Miller’s fir ing by the Board of Regents in July. Reagan adjusts cut to suit big business 12. 6. 9. 9. 6. 12. ain may not rebuild water supply lecent heavy rains covering most of state may alleviate some surface wa- shortages, says the director of the las Water Resources Institute, but still faces a water crisis that could nore severe than the present energy is. “The lack of rain last year has re- 5ed the amount of surface water avail- and ground water supplies are ng used up faster than they are being >lenished,’ said Dr. Jack Runkles. lis presents problems to cities and nicipalities, the energy industry and ticularly in agriculture. ’ While the developing water crisis will 3ct the entire nation, it will be most ere in Texas and the Southwest as : population continues to grow, said nkles, who predicts by the year 2000 xans will be consuming 24 billion gal- s of water a day, up from an esti- ted 15 billion gallons a day currently ing used. Part of the Texas A&M Sys- the water resources institute con- Jcts long-range studies on water use id technology to improve the efficien- of use. “Although recent rainfalls have ought up reservoir levels, helping to While the developing water crisis will affect the entire nation, it will be most severe in Texas and the Southwest as the population continues to grow. ease concerns about water supplies for summer needs, ’ Runkles said, “there still will be problems of getting water to residences as many of the state’s cities are having growing pains in terms of expanding and improving their water distribution systems. “Cities that ration water during sum mer usually don’t do so because there’s a shortage of water,” Runkles ex plained, “but because the demand for it surpasses the capacity available to supp ly it.” Of concern to many water experts is the time it takes to develop additional quantities of water for the state to sur vive a severe drought. While water concerns are among top priorities for cities and industry working within the guidelines of the state’s water resource development plan for alterna tive water sources and distribution methods, the biggest user of water, agriculture, is also taking steps to curtail foreseeable problems. “A new method of irrigation in the High Plains alone, developed by Texas A&M agricultural engineers, could re sult in a $1.5 billion energy savings dur ing the next 20 years,” Runkles said, “and it could extend the underground water supply coming from the Ogallala Aquifer by at least 10 years.” The system, termed Low Energy Precision Application (LEPA), uses a combination of low-water pressure. trickle irrigation and small retaining di kes between rows of plants to hold both irrigation and rainwater. Runkles pointed out as levels in water aquifers continue to decline, the cost of getting water out of the ground will increase. New designs in both wells and irrigation systems increase energy efficiency in pulling water out of the ground and dis tributing it, he said. Agricultural researchers with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station are also developing drought-resistant plants in light of the water situation. The Texas Engineering Extension Ser vice is developing a state-wide program of water and waste water training aimed at setting standards of drinking water, improving waste treatment methods and assisting small communities in meeting more stringent requirements of the Safe Water Act. “For the next few decades our best options will be to pursue a more active program of conservation and perhaps additional water supplies from outside the state,” Runkles said, “and to de velop technology that would improve the efficiency of water use and distribu tion. United Press International WASHINGTON — President Reagan is willing to add more business breaks to his tax cut plan in answer to industry complaints — but wants to stick within his dollar and deficit ceil ings, the White House said Tuesday. Deputy White House press secretary Kama Small described a tentative com promise as “fine tuning changes” to Reagan’s plan. She said they involve improved depreciation allowances in 1985 and 1986. Treasury Secretary Donald Regan, who held gripe sessions with business leaders last week and arranged another meeting Tuesday, told the corporate representatives, “We need to keep the rough dollar and deficit figures,” said Small. “Now, if you have any other ideas, we ll be happy to look at the figures,” she quoted Regan as saying. “Various business groups have come forth with ideas, ” she said, “but nothing is finalized. Treasury is doing a cost analysis which should be completed to day (Tuesday), in time for the mark-up of the bill, ” expected today. Reagan originally proposed $173 bil lion in business tax relief over six years. A revised proposal he announced last week calls for $123 billion in breaks. The president’s original business tax proposal would allow business to depre ciate investments in buildings over 10 years, equipment over five years and vehicles over three. To save money, the administration proposed last week to stretch out building depreciation to 15 years and to slow down the rate of equipment investment that could be written off during the five-year period. The original measure included a proposal to allow business to use a 200 percent “declining balance” — doubl ing its rate of depreciation — in figuring equipment write-offs. Last week, the White House proposed a 150 percent figure. The tentative compromise allows 175 percent in 1985 and 200 per cent in 1986. The Washington Post said the com promise could restore $15 billion in business breaks between 1981 and 1986 — nearly a third of the $50 billion chop ped from the original plan. Democrats working on their own alternative tax plan intend to begin by working on the business tax angle, and the White House is anxious to head off industry defections. Both bills call for tax cuts for indi viduals, an accelerated depreciation schedule for business investments and a laundry list of sweetners, including modification of the so-called marriage penalty and larger exemptions for estate and gift taxes. But the administration’s bill, because it stretches over nearly three years, in volves more lost revenue to the Treas ury and cuts individual taxes 25 percent across the board. The Democrats want a 15 percent cut in personal income taxes over two years, with additional changes — such as an increase in the standard deduction — to target the tax savings to families with incomes between $20,000 and $50,000. To the White House, the critical defi ciency in the Democratic alternative is its failure to cut taxes across the board for three years. Congressional obser vers say that may be the Democrats’ best selling point. cademic programs pen to vacationers 22. Texas A&M University is opening its Jade in ic arsenal to offer unusual learning vacations’ this summer for its Jrmer students. The program is called “Wappens- Jaw,” from the Scottish term for a dis may of strength. “The word literally means weapons jow,” said the group’s leader, Dr. ienry D. Pope, coordinator of the con ning education program in the Col- |?e of Liberal Arts. “We named the program Wappens- naw because it involves weapons of the Jind, spirit and heart, and the event lould allow vacationers to see Texas |&M’s academic arsenal.” Pope explained the new program will five former students a chance to get pacquainted with Texas A&M and ex- erience a little of present-day student ife. Too often, former students return • the University and feel alienated be- ause of its rapid growth, he said. “The vacationers will be staying in dormitories and attending classes rang ing from archaelogy, computers and in vestments to candy making, floral de corations and woods in architecture and sculpture,” Pope said. “They’ll also have full use of the Uni versity’s recreational facilities, allowing them to golf, swim, bowl and participate in a number of other activities.” The classroom lectures, meant to be stimulating and challenging, will be taught by Texas A&M faculty members. “The idea is for former students to have a place for self-renewal,” Pope said, “and for them to get a chance to see how their alma mater has changed over the years.” The four-day program begins June 15, costs $450 per person or $850 per couple and has been planned to give former students and friends of the Uni versity time to relax. Those who wish to participate should contact the Liberal Arts Continuing Education program at Texas A&M. MSC offers art exhibit by women An art collection from the estate of a former Texas A&M professor of his tory is now on exhibit at the Memo rial Student Center Gallery. The collection of prints, seri- graphs, lithographs, etchings and photographs reflect Dr. Lloyd Taylor’s scholarly interest in the his tory of women. Taylor was with the Department of History at Texas A&M from 1956 until his death in 1977. He donated the collection to the University in 1978. The exhibit consists of works by female artists including: graphic artist Peggy Bacon, photographer Laura Gilpin, abstract painter Sonia Deluanay and portrait painter Janet Turner. Other artists represented in the collection are: Joan Hill, Ruth Ker- kovius, Barbara Latham, Margaret Philbrick, Clare Romano, Rosalyn Stern and Beth Van Hoesen. The exhibit is being presented by the MSC Arts Committee. The MSC Gallery is open from 8 a.m. to 8p.m. Monday through Saturday. The ex hibit will be on display through July 10. Steven Scruggs, a senior Engineering Technology student studies some of the artwork on display by Lloyd C. Taylor in the Memorial Student Center Staff photo by Greg Gammon Gallery. The Gallery, located on the first floor of the MSC, will be open to the public from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. through July 10.