Despite automatic federal spending cuts scheduled to take effect on Friday, the Smithsonian Institution has promised to keep its 19 museums and the National Zoo in Washington open for their regular hours, The Associated Press reported.
“Right now, it won’t affect the public,†Linda St. Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Smithsonian, said. Ms. St. Thomas said that the scheduled 5 percent cut - some $40 million â€" would be applied to maintenance, new construction, hiring, research, training and travel. The Smithsonian, which employs about 6,000 people, received $857 million from the federal government this fiscal year.
The director of the National Zoo, Dennis Kelly, said the zoo has been hoarding cash to make sure it has enough to care for its animals and continue its research, according to The A.P. “We think we have a plan that allws us to squeak through to the end of this fiscal year, †Mr. Kelly said. “But we can’t sustain this. At the end of the fiscal year, if we’re still in this mode, the entire Smithsonian is going to have to rethink all of our priorities.â€
