Fuzzy writing and thinking go together, as the Oregon House has just proved again. Not a single dissenting voice was raised as the House on Monday passed House Bill 3612. The bill sailed through the place on a vote of 59-0.

The Democrats, who hold a slim majority in the House, said the bill would require state agencies to reduce energy consumption by 20 percent by the year 2015.

Actually, though, the bill refers to "a state agency, board or commission, department or division that is authorized to finance the construction, purchase or renovation of a facility that is or will be used by the state of Oregon."

Presumably that cumbersome phrase applies only to arms of the state that are authorized to build or acquire new quarters, and then only if they "finance" the acquisition, not if they pay for it out of funds provided by the legislature.

Since these presumably are buildings about to be built, it's a mystery how they are going to reduce their energy use 20 percent below 2000, when they didn't exist.

Or maybe the bill means something else when it says energy use must be reduced "by at least 20 percent from a baseline amount the state Energy Department determines by rule based on usage in calendar year 2000."

The bill says state agencies may not build or renovate buildings unless the design "incorporates all reasonable cost-effective energy conservation measures and alternative energy systems."

New public buildings presumably already use the best technology for saving energy. But this bill complicates life by containing requirements like this: "Cost-effective means that an energy resource, facility or conservation measure during its life cycle results in delivered power costs to the ultimate consumer no greater than the comparable incremental cost of the least cost alternative new energy resource, facility or conservation measure."

To make sense of this gobbledegook, rules will have to be written, studies made, and initial and annual reports filed. The likely upshot is that public buildings will take longer to design and cost more to build than they otherwise would.

But not a single House member said no. (hh)