The U.S. Congress passed the Energy Policy Act of 2005 in August after about five years of work. But as soon as the ink was dry, energy prices started climbing, driven by tight energy markets and the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. As a result, many legislative proposals now being discussed are likely to receive attention in 2006. Whether legislation actually passes will depend on whether compromises can be reached on a variety of contentious issues and will also depend on energy prices—the higher prices are, the more pressure there will be to "do something." Some of the major issues now under discussion are as follows:

• Renewable Portfolio and Energy Efficiency Resource Standards. A renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS) has passed the Senate several times, but was dropped from the 2005 law due to House opposition. There is now talk of expanding the RPS to include efficiency and perhaps other "advanced" energy sources in order to increase support in the House.

• Reducing Oil Consumption. Bills have been introduced that set a target of reducing U.S. oil use by 2.5 million barrels per day by 2016 and 10 million barrels per day by 2031. Another bill would assist auto manufacturers with rising health costs provided that at least half of the savings are reinvested in advanced vehicle technologies such as hybrids and lean-burn diesels, or are invested in worker training or plant retooling.

• Equipment Efficiency Standards. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 set new efficiency standards on 16 products, based on consensus agreements negotiated between ACEEE, product manufacturers, and other energy efficiency supporters. ACEEE continues to work on negotiating such agreements and expects to have several such agreements ready for inclusion in a 2006 bill.

• Extending Energy Efficiency Tax Incentives. One of the final changes made in developing the Energy Policy Act of 2005, was to cut most of the energy efficiency tax incentives from three years to two years in order to reduce the cost of the provision. Proposals are already circulating to extend at least some of the credits since, for at least some provisions, two years is too short a period to have a significant influence on the market. Tax incentives are more likely to be extended in 2007, but could perhaps be included in a 2006 bill.

• Other Efficiency Provisions. A variety of other provisions, such as least-cost dispatch of generation units and improvements to building codes for federally financed homes, are likely to be discussed. At this point it's unclear which, if any, could move forward.