Chemical warfare plant advanced in House vote

The House has voted to build a new chemical warfare weapons plant at Pine Bluff, Ark., ignoring administration arguments that the move is counter to US military policy. The action came as the House approved a $5.5 billion military construction authorization bill for 1981. The fate of the chemical weapons plant is expected to be decided in a conference committee with the Senate, which shares the administration's opposition to the plant. If the project proceeds, it would be the first such move since President Nixon's 1969 decision to halt chemical weapons production.