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WASHINGTON, DC-By a 263 to 171 vote, the House ofRepresentatives passed the financial rescue plan the BushAdministration has been trying to move past the finish line for thelast three weeks. This is the third time the House considered thebill.

Tinkering by both legislative branches over the last three weekshave added tighter oversight, caps on executive pay atparticipating firms and a mechanism for the taxpayers to share inthe profits. In the Senate-amendedversion, tax relief in certain categories and a $150,000increase in the amount the FDIC will insure, were added.Specifically, the 400-plus-page plan allows:

• The Secretary of Treasury to buy bad debt mortgages, the cruxof the plan that is estimated to cost $700 billion. The governmentwill receive warrants from companies to ensure that future profitscan be shared by the government.
• The SEC to suspend mark-to-market accounting for any type ofsecurity.
• Homeowner protections, such as allowing Treasury to modifytroubled loans to prevent foreclosure in some cases.
• Limits in tax benefits and executive pay at participatingcompanies, particularly "golden parachutes" and bonuses in somecases.
• A tiered schedule of funding dispersal, with Treasury receivingthe first $250 billion tranche immediately. For the next $100billion, the president must certify that additional funds areneeded. The next $350 billion is subject to Congressionalapproval.
• A temporary Increase in FDIC deposit insurance coverage from$100,000 to $250,000 per account, with similar increases for creditunion deposits
• Tax sweeteners including extensions of the Production TaxCredit for Alternative Energy Investments and a one-year extensionof the Alternative Minimum Tax relief.

The bill is moving now to Pres. George W. Bush's desk, who isexpected to promptly sign it with great relief. Indeed it had beenunclear whether the House would pass the bill on Friday, despitethe considerable pressure placed on holdouts. But this storm oflobbying from the real estate and business communities--along withchanges to the last version of the bill--eventually swayed enoughlegislators. "In the last week, AGC members generated anunprecedented number of letters to their Senators andRepresentatives because Congressional inaction was affecting theirbusinesses," Stephen Sandherr, CEO of Associated GeneralContractors of America, says in a prepared statement.