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FEDERAL
VOLUME 3

REGISTER
1934

< t/AHTEO

NUMBER 40

Washington, Saturday, February 26, 1938
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR.
Bureau of Mines.
R eg u la tio ns G o v ern in g t h e P ro d u ctio n and S a le o f H e l iu m f o r M ed ica l , S c ie n t if ic and C o m m erc ia l U se INTRODUCTION

The Act approved September 1, 1937 Public No. 411, 75th Congress, First Session, entitled An Act Authorizing the conservation, production, exploitation, and sale of helium gas, a mineral resource pertain in g to the national defense and to the development of commercial aeronautics, authoriz ing the acquisition, by purchase or otherwise, by the United States of properties for the production of helium gas, and for other purposes, reads in part as follows:
Sec. S. a That the Army and Navy and other agencies of the Federal Government may requisition helium from the Bureau of mitwr and make payments therefor from any applicable appro priations by advancing or repaying to and for the use of said Bureau proportionate shares of the expenses incident to the admin istration, operation, and maintenance of the Governments helium plants and properties.
b That helium not needed for Government use may be pro duced and sold upon payment in advance in quantities and under regulations approved by the President, for medical, scientific, and commercial use, except that helium may be sold for the inflation of only such airships as operate in or between the United States and its Territories and possessions, or between the United States or its Territories and possessions and foreign countries: Provided, That no helium shall be sold for the inflation of any airship operating between two foreign countries notwithstanding such air ship may also touch at some point in the United States: Provided further, That such sales of helium shall be at reasonable prices established by said regulations based upon the cost of acquiring, developing, maintaining, and operating the Government prop erties and the payment of interest at a rate of not less than 34
per centum per annum on capital hereafter expended except from the special fund established in subsection c of section 3
of this Act for properties, facilities, and helium-bearing gas lands, as are used for such helium production: Provided further, That notwithstanding the foregoing provision helium shall be sold for medicinal purposes at prices which will permit its general use therefor; and such sales of helium shall be upon condition that the Federal Government shall have a right to repurchase helium so sold that has not been lost or dissipated, when needed for Gov ernment use, under terms and at prices established by said regulations.
c All moneys received under this Act, including moneys from sale of helium or other products resulting from helium operations except moneys received in payment for helium from Government departments or agencies under subsection a hereof, shall be credited to a special helium-production fund from which pur chasers of helium may be reimbursed for payments for helium in excess of deliveries, and the Secretary of the Interior through the Bureau of Mines may draw on said fund to pay expenses of acquiring, administering, operating, maintaining, and developing helium properties. Amounts accumulating in said fund in excess of amounts the Secretary of the Interior deems necessary to assure payment of such expenses shall be deposited in the Treasury to the credit of miscellaneous receipts:

Under the authority of the aforementioned provisions of law these regulations are issued, with approval of the Presi dent, to govern production and sale by the Bureau of Mines, Department of the Interior, for medical, srient.ifir and
commercial use, of the light gas, generally referred to as helium or helium gas, which consists largely of the gaseous element, helium, but contains minor amounts of other gases as impurities. Such gas is produced in the Gov ernment-owned helium plant situated near Amarillo, Texas, and may be produced in the future at other plants owned or to be acquired by the Government.
Section 1. Definitions Unless the context requires other interpretation, the fol lowing terms, as used in these regulations, shall have the!
meaning here given:
a Contained helium..The actual quantity of the ele-
ment, helium, contained in a mixture of that element and other gases.
b Purity of helium.The volume the contained helium t in a mixture would occupy if not mixed with other gases, expressed in percentage of the volume of the mixture, both 1
volumes being measured at, or reduced to, a pressure of 14.7
pounds per square inch absolute and a temperature of 70
Fahrenheit.
c Cubic foot of contained helium.The quantity of con tained helium that would occupy a volume of one cubic foot!
at normal atmospheric pressure 14.7 pounds per square inch absolute and 70 Fahrenheit, if it were not mixed with other gases.
d Unit of helium.One thousand 1,000 cubic feet of contained helium.
e Market helium.Helium sold or to be sold under the provision of said Act which reads, That helium not needed for Government use may be produced and sold upon payment in advance in quantities and under regulations approved by the President, for medical, scientific, and commercial use.
/ Production outlet.The discharge end of the pipe or pipes through which helium of about 98 percent purity, and at a pressure of not more than 2,500 pounds per square inch gage, leaves the production equipment or storage facilities of a Government helium plant.
SO Actual cost per unit of helium.The cost per thousand cubic feet of contained helium, computed as prescribed in Section 4 hereof, of market helium at the production outlet.
h Estimated cost per unit of helium.An estimate of the actual cost per unit of market helium at the production outlet, prepared by the Bureau of Mines prior to the time when the actual cost per unit of helium can be determined.
i Service charges.Charges for services rendered, ma terials furnished, or expenses incurred by the Bureau of Mines which are not directly attributable to activities re quired for delivering helium at the production outlet; these may include charges for unloading, h an dling, repairing, loading and hauling containers supplied by purchasers of market helium, use of containers if supplied by the said Bureau, cribbing freight cars, telegrams, and other expenses that are attributable directly to an individual contract, de livery, or shipment rather than to the common cost of pro ducing helium and delivering it at the production outlet.
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