President Bush has signed into law a major energy bill that emphasizes conservation after the Senate made the bill more palatable to Republicans. The bill's enactment came Dec. 19, one day after the House passed it, sending it to the White House.

The Senate cleared the path for the bill on Dec. 13 when Democratic leaders there deleted most of a $21.8-billion package of tax breaks and offsetting tax hikes. It was the tax increases, aimed largely at big oil companies, that drew opposition, mostly from GOP lawmakers.

But the tax breaks that were dropped included several incentives for renewable energy, which solar and wind energy groups and environmental organizations supported, and an extension of a deduction for energy-efficient commercial buildings, whose backers included the American Institute of Architects.

The bill's remaining hallmark feature is a 40% increase in federal fuel-economy standards for cars and other vehicles by the 2020 model year. But for construction, some of the measure's key items are several provisions to increase energy efficiency in buildings. They including a mandate that federal facilities reduce their fossil-fuel use to zero in 2030.

The bill also calls for "green buildings" offices at the Dept. of Energy and General Services Administration. In addition it authorizes a "Commercial Buildings Initiative," which seeks to cut such facilities' energy use through research, pilot programs and other efforts. Kateri Callahan, president of the Alliance to Save Energy, says, 'With commercial buildings accounting for 18% of the nation's total energy use and 45% of the nation's energy use by buildings, ensuring that new commercial construction produces 'zero-energy' buildings would be a huge step forward."

Environmental groups praised the House vote, but didn't gain all they had sought. They failed to convince Congress to require for utility companies to get 15% of their power from wind and other renewable sources by 2015. That renewable electricity standard was included in an earlier House version of the legislation, but the Senate dropped it in the face of opposition from Southeast lawmakers and the Edison Electric Institute, which represents utilities.