Offshore drilling ban will expire — for now

WASHINGTON — A long-standing congressional ban on new offshore oil drilling will expire in seven days, with Democratic leaders conceding Tuesday they stand no chance of renewing it this year over President Bush's opposition and in a year where gasoline prices have become a campaign issue.

By lapsing, the issue will gain greater prominence in the presidential election because it will be up to the next president and Congress to decide whether to renew all or part of the ban, first imposed in 1981 to put much of the California coast off-limits to new rigs and expanded to much of the rest of the U.S. coast in 1985.

"This next election will decide what our drilling policy will be," said Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

Republican presidential nominee John McCain, like Bush, wants to lift the ban entirely, while Democratic nominee Barack Obama has said he would consider limited offshore drilling as part of a broader energy-policy compromise.

"After a long summer of $4 gas, with winter home-heating bills on the way, this good news could not have come too soon," said Rep. Adam Putnam of Florida, chairman of the House Republican Conference.

Once the ban expires, oil companies could seek federal approval to drill three miles offshore or farther.

Ban supporters hope that before any new drilling can begin, they can renew the ban or win approval of compromise legislation that would let states decide whether to permit energy exploration 50 miles off their coast.

The drilling ban had been included annually in spending bills. But the current ban expires Sept. 30, and 155 House Republicans and 49 Senate Republicans vowed to fight any effort to extend it as part of a must-pass bill needed to keep the government funded into next year. That bill, which will come before the House and the Senate this week, will include $25 billion in loans to help the auto industry build more fuel-efficient cars.

While an extension of the drilling ban was left out of the draft spending bill, the Senate on Tuesday approved a long-stalled package of $17 billion in tax breaks to promote development of cleaner energy sources, such as solar and wind power.

The measure, which now goes to the House, also would shield millions of middle-class taxpayers from the alternative minimum tax.

In other action Tuesday:

Rail safety: House and Senate negotiators reached a deal on a railroad-safety-overhaul bill that will require new technology to prevent crashes and limit hours engineers can work. The deal is expected to be brought to a vote in the House today. The package also authorizes billions for Amtrak.

Child porn: Long-stalled legislation making it easier to prosecute those engaged in child pornography cleared the Senate by voice vote. The bill must go back to the House.

Great Lakes Compact: The House approved a bill, 390-25, to protect the freshwater in the Great Lakes region by prohibiting almost any diversion of it to places outside the lakes' basin and requiring the eight states bordering the lakes to follow new conservation standards. President Bush is expected to sign the bill.

Seattle Times news services