eae b. Maintenance of access controls is expensive, a nuisance to-the private lives of residents and the business operations of concessionaires, and a major obstacle to a "normal" community. c. Although some residents may enjoy the privacy-accompanying restriction of access, this does not justify continuance of such controls. d. Control over access should be removed as soon as possible, recognizing the need for time to plan and introduce changes in community policing, traffic routing and regulations, and other operations which will be af- fected by the absence of controls. . On December 2, 1953, SFOO forwarded the full report to AEC and recommended decision to remove access controls some time within fiscal year 1955 but no later than June 30, 1955. The action would remove restrictions on movement into and out of the community, such as requirements for resident and visitor passes and the system of se- curity checks on all highways and at the airport. There would be no relaxation of controls over access to, or of other procedures guarding, the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. No decision was reached on provision of a portion of land for sale to or longterm lease to residents or to business concessionaires for private construction. bility of such action was to continue. Study of the desira- Withdrawal of Field Authority for Public Information Action The withdrawal from the field of authority for taking information action to support field mission operations, which had been progressive since 1950, was accelerated during the six months by two limiting directives and a series of AEC staff supplements and interpretations. The impact on SFO contractor-field office-operations office management was far-reaching, entirely reversing the one-time philosophy of fullest possible delegation of operating authority. Of key importance was the determination that declassification or nonclassification does not permit public release, and that action on nonclassified information generally must be reviewed at the Washington level for sensitivity and policy before it may be used publicly. Major Contract Negotiations In addition to the negotiation of an operating contract with Thompson Products Company, which was well under way when the Spoon River plant was cancelled, SFOO conducted or participated in other major contract negotiations during the six months. A fee formula was negotiated with Dow Chemical Company for Rocky Flats operation. Negotiation of a three-year extension to the Bendix contract for operation of the Kansas City plant was well under way by January1. ELSO The Sandia Corporation contract for operation of Sandia Laboratory was to expire December 31, but was extended four months to permit further negotiation. Initial dis- cussion was by Sandia Corporation and SFOO with further negotiation conducted between Western Electric and AEC-Washington officials. Initial negotiation was conducted on a two-year operating contract with American Car & Foundry covering work at the Albuquerque plant. Dae 18 23