"One of the major changes in thinking is tourism," said Matt Kane, a policy analyst for the Northeast-Midwest Institute, a economic research group based in Washington.

The figures were computed by the Northeast-Midwest Institute, whose director volunteered: "We knew it was bad, but we didn't know it was that bad."

The Northeast-Midwest Institute counts all Federal expenditures going to the states, including, for example, salaries paid to military personnel.

On another side the Northeast-Midwest Institute is diligently preparing a report on Federal aid to states.

The Northeast-Midwest Institute still dwarfs its Southern rival.

Founded in 1976, The Northeast-Midwest Institute and Congressional coalition has a staff of 25 people and a combined budget of about $1.4 million.

He has also approached the Northeast-Midwest Institute to see if the two factions can work together on issues of common concern, for instance, disposal of solid waste.

But that is not necessarily a bad thing in today's political climate, the Northeast-Midwest Institute concluded last week.

"The new federal law provides a more realistic assessment of risk," said Charles Bartsh, a senior policy analyst with the Northeast-Midwest Institute, a Washington-based research organization.

"We're concerned about the redistributional effects," said Paula Duggan, a senior policy analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute, which does research for members of Congress from those two regions.