WASHINGTON - In a setback for the Bush administration, the U.S. Senate Friday refused to end debate on a broad energy bill offering nearly $24 billion in tax breaks, but the legislation may get a second chance.

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The Republican-written energy bill was overwhelmingly passed earlier this week by the Republican-dominated House.

It faced stiff opposition in the Senate from Democrats and moderate Republicans, who complained the bill would protect petrochemical companies from lawsuits for contaminating water with MTBE, a gasoline fuel additive.

In a close vote of 57-40, the Senate failed by three votes to end a filibuster in a procedural vote. Republican leaders needed 60 votes to cut off debate and proceed to a final vote.

Also See: Archer-Daschle-Midland If Republicans finally pass their extravagant energy bill this weekend, we hope they take a moment to thank the one man who above all others will have made it possible: Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle... more... Wall Street Journal Editorial 11/21/2003

Republicans control the 100-member Senate with 51 seats.

To get the energy package back on the track, Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle proposed stripping out the controversial MTBE provisions and folding the rest of the energy legislation into the massive, must-pass omnibus spending bill that funds the government.

"This (energy) bill could have been much better," said Daschle, from South Dakota, who nonetheless voted to end the filibuster in favor of the legislation's boost in ethanol production.

Intensive lobbying and arm-twisting continued until the final minutes of the vote to win support from a few Midwestern lawmakers who were still undecided. Democratic aides said Republicans tried to woo votes by offering to insert funding for pet projects in a separate government spending bill.

The procedural vote raised doubts about the passage of the energy bill. Still, Senate Republican Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee said he would hold "at least one more vote," possibly Monday, to try to end the filibuster before Congress adjourns for the Thanksgiving holiday.

The energy bill includes $23.5 billion in tax breaks, with a total cost of about $31 billion over 10 years due to new funding, grants and production incentives. The White House had sought about $8 billion in energy tax breaks.

But the Senate debate over the bill boiled down to a fight over two kinds of gasoline additives.

Democrats -- and some Republicans in affected states -- were incensed at a provision that would protect Texas petrochemical makers of MTBE from product liability lawsuits, retroactive to Sept. 5, 2003. More than 1,500 cities say they face costly cleanups because water supplies were tainted by MTBE, a suspected carcinogen.

The bill would ban MTBE by 2015, but give makers more than $1 billion to convert to other businesses.

"Unfortunately, at a time when America demands a thoughtful and far-reaching energy policy, this proposal instead delivered little bags of goodies to some individuals, not others, and says that is a substitute for policy," said Democrat Charles Schumer of New York.

The legislation would also offer benefits for a rival additive, corn-based ethanol, by doubling U.S. use by 2012. Ethanol use in fuel is a politically popular issue in the Corn Belt of the Midwest as a way to increase farm income and stretch gasoline supplies.

"The oil companies hate ethanol," said Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.

The MTBE legal waiver was included in the bill only "to get the oil companies to go along," he said.

Durbin was among several Midwestern senators who oppose the energy bill.

Frist told lawmakers the ethanol measure would not be brought up as a separate bill or attached to other legislation.

Republican supporters of the legislation acknowledge it offers a smorgasbord of benefits for the oil, natural gas, coal, electricity and nuclear power industries, but say it would also create tens of thousands of jobs.

Republican Pete Domenici of New Mexico, the bill manager, said the choice was clear for Midwestern senators.

"You're choosing lawyers over farmers" by opposing the energy bill, he said, referring to MTBE lawsuits and ethanol.

If the legislation is killed, "there is nobody that can pass another bill like this with these kinds of things in it for a long, long time," Domenici said.

Domenici would not comment directly on whether Republicans would take Daschle's proposal to strip the MTBE liability provisions from the energy bill.

"It's a sticking point and we're going to talk to the House (of Representatives) about it," he said. "We can't just necessarily wave a wand and pass it."

Thirteen Democrats backed the energy bill, while seven Republicans crossed party lines to vote against it.

Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham criticized the filibuster, saying: "The American people deserve to have an up or down vote on the bill."

Copyright 2003 Reuters Ltd

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