A reprieve for federal helium

The House of Representatives last week agreed to delay the closure of the Federal Helium Reserve amid fears of a potential shortage of the inert, lighter-than-air gas. The Texas-based reserve contains a third of the world’s helium supply, which is sold off by the government to U.S. companies that use it in everything from MRI machines to party balloons. In 1996 Congress voted to close the program, hoping the private sector would move in, and operations were due to terminate in October. But companies have so far been put off by high operational costs, leaving the prospect of a supply gap. The bill, passed on a vote of 394–1, will allow the reserve to operate for another year.