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NewsNovember 19, 2003

WASHINGTON -- The House approved a far-reaching energy bill Tuesday that would provide billions of dollars in tax incentives for oil, gas and coal producers and give a boost to corn farmers by requiring a doubling of ethanol use in gasoline. It also would impose federal reliability rules on operators of high-voltage power lines for the first time, to reduce the likelihood of another cascading blackout like the one last summer. ...

WASHINGTON -- The House approved a far-reaching energy bill Tuesday that would provide billions of dollars in tax incentives for oil, gas and coal producers and give a boost to corn farmers by requiring a doubling of ethanol use in gasoline. It also would impose federal reliability rules on operators of high-voltage power lines for the first time, to reduce the likelihood of another cascading blackout like the one last summer. The House passed the bill by a vote of 246-180, sending it to the Senate for final approval, probably later this week.

Probe: Pilot error receives blame for Wellstone crash

WASHINGTON -- Pilot error caused the plane crash that killed Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., and seven others just before the 2002 election, federal investigators said Tuesday. The twin-propeller King Air A100 stalled when the flight crew slowed it too quickly while approaching an airport in northern Minnesota on Oct. 25, 2002, investigators told the National Transportation Safety Board. The plane crashed 2 1/2 miles short of the runway. Interviews conducted after the crash revealed shortcomings in the proficiency of both pilots, investigators said.

Judge won't dismiss two charges against Stewart

NEW YORK -- A federal judge Tuesday refused to dismiss a securities fraud charge that accuses Martha Stewart of deceiving her stockholders when she publicly declared her innocence in the insider-trading scandal. Eight weeks before the home-decorating authority goes to trial, U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum brushed aside defense arguments that the charge violates Stewart's free-speech rights under the First Amendment. The judge also refused, for now, to dismiss an obstruction of justice charge.

Schwarzenegger wants to borrow billions

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that he wants the state to ease its budget woes by borrowing up to $15 billion through a bond issue. The legislature should bring the question before voters by putting a bond issue measure on the March ballot, he said. Schwarzenegger also said lawmakers should find an additional $11 billion in savings in the workers' compensation system and a means to compensate local governments for the approximately $4 billion they lost when he rolled back a tripling of the vehicle license fee on Monday.

Consumer prices flat despite big jump in beef

WASHINGTON -- Consumer prices were flat in October as a sharp drop in the costs of gasoline and other energy products swamped the biggest jump in beef and veal prices seen in 24 years. The Labor Department's latest reading Tuesday on the Consumer Price Index, the government's most closely watched inflation barometer, showed that overall consumer prices eased last month after rising by 0.3 percent in both August and September. The flat reading on the CPI in October came after four straight months of price increases.

Study: Prostate treatment works less for black men

WASHINGTON -- Black men do not survive as long as white men after treatment for localized prostate cancer, according to a new study.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill analyzed the records of 5,747 black men and 38,242 white men who had been treated for prostate cancer that had not spread. They found that the median survival time for black men was 1.7 years less than the survival time for white men. The difference was even greater, 1.8 years, for patients who received surgery. Black prostate surgery patients lived an average of 10.8 years, while white patients lived 12.6 years.

-- From wire reports

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