The Energy Independence and Security Act, a wide-ranging energy bill, was signed into law today by President Bush. The bill is the first to address U.S. energy needs in a comprehensive way since the oil crisis of the 1970s. It raises fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks from 27.5 a gallon for cars and 23.2 for light trucks to 35 miles a gallon, to be achieved by 2020. It also requires production of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022, sets new efficiency standards for household appliances and government buildings, and proposes a phase out of incandescent light bulbs within the next ten years.

Critics were disappointed that provisions requiring utilities to produce a larger share of electricity from renewable sources and subsidizing wind, solar, geothermal, and other alternative energy sources were removed from the bill before passage, under threat of Presidential veto.

Estimates by the bipartisan National Commission on Energy Policy are that the mileage requirement and the biofuels provision will reduced the nation’s projected carbon dioxide emissions by four percent.