March 11, 1993

A Federal judge ruled today that a panel that is forging the Administration's health policy under the direction of Hillary Rodham Clinton must announce all its meetings in advance and make sessions where it collects facts and information open to the public. But he said the panel could meet in private when "formulating its recommendations for the President." The judge, Royce C. Lamberth of the Federal District Court here, said Mrs. Clinton's Task Force on National Health Care Reform could not hold any meetings until it complied with a 1972 law governing the operation of Federal advisory committees.

Negotiators for Gov. Mario M. Cuomo and the Oneida Indians have reached agreement on a compact that would allow the opening of New York State's first high-stakes gambling casino in a tiny rural community near the center of the state. The compact must now be signed by Mr. Cuomo and the United States Secretary of the Interior before the Oneidas can open a new $10 million casino that is near completion on rolling farmland owned by the Indians adjacent to the Gov. Thomas E. Dewey Thruway about 30 miles east of Syracuse.

Lumber prices have jumped 82 percent since September and are likely to continue to soar with the arrival of spring, when building increases and the demand for lumber picks up. Because the cost of lumber usually amounts to 10 to 15 percent of the cost of a new home, the shortage of lumber could eventually push up home prices.

When Paul Carman first saw the big Cincinnati Milacron T-10 at the Byrd Institute here, he gazed straight into his own future. The computer-controlled milling machine could spit out intricately shaped metal parts in 12 minutes -- 15 times faster than his own shop. And he could use the $350,000 T-10 for only $30 to $35 a hour. Mr. Carman's first visit to West Virginia's "teaching factory" was an eye-opener. A hands-on center that gives small manufacturers low-cost access to some of the most advanced technology and management expertise around, it is equipped with the computerized tools and instruments that can ignite productivity and sales but that most small companies simply cannot afford to test.

The United States is urging its allies to start preparing an international force, expected to exceed 50,000 troops, that would be sent to Bosnia and Herzegovina immediately after a peace settlement there, diplomats and military officials said today. But planning for the force, which could include as many as 20,000 American troops, is being hampered by a dispute between the United States and France over who would command it.