To most people helium is the gas that makes children's balloons float and voices sound like Donald Duck. In the last two years, however, helium became a focal point in the messy political struggle to downsize the federal budget. Last year, Congress and President Clinton acted to sell off the federally maintained helium reserve.

Critics have ridiculed the helium reserve as a white elephant left over from the days of World War I dirigibles. Representative Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) labeled the reserve a "poster child of government waste." President Clinton originally called for the helium reserve program's improvement as part of his "reinventing government" proposals. Ultimately, however, Clinton sided with congressional Republicans, labeling the reserve "an anachronism" and calling for its elimination.

In the swirling winds of political rhetoric, however, the government may have acted precipitously. Helium has unique properties that make it irreplaceable for science and industry. As the only element that does not freeze solid-remaining liquid even at just a fraction of a degree above absolute zero (-460 degrees Fahrenheit)-helium is essential for a variety of uses that require extreme cold. According to the American Physical Society, the reserve's elimination will lead inevitably to U.S. shortages of helium and disrupt scientific and industrial research.

The United States is home to rich natural reserves of helium, mixed with methane in the gas fields of Texas and Wyoming. U.S. companies recover more than 3.3 billion cubic feet of helium every year. In 1996, the U.S. consumed 2.4 billion cubic feet of helium and exported another 970 million cubic feet of the gas. Because of the slim margin between production and consumption, a reserve is crucial to provide consistent supplies.