Mr. Parra, the Houston district director, said that as an "informal interim policy," his office would grant "extended voluntary departure" status to many such family members.

At Tuesday's meeting board members agreed on an interim policy: let universities and other grant recipients own the patents developed from their research financed by the stem cell program and license them to companies.

The interim policy calls for universities to share the proceeds from highly lucrative patents with the state in some still unspecified way.

To try to evade the law, the Interior Department issued an "interim policy" that did exactly what the prohibited regulations would have done.

In his ruling last week, Judge Hatter found both the interim policy and the later compromise unconstitutional.

The United Healthcare Corporation, also a large national insurer, said it had adopted an interim policy of approving eight pills a month.

She said the new policy, like the interim policy that has been in effect since Mr. Clinton took office, required the military to stop asking personnel about their sexual orientation.

Beyond those two changes, however, the new policy differs very little from the interim policy or the ban that was in effect when Mr. Clinton took office.

He set interim policy within the general guidelines laid down by the Master, and established the rankings and placement of the major subchiefs.

I believe the time is long overdue for the Smithsonian to not just comply with its interim policy, but to firmly move ahead to fully divest.