The bill to undo I-937 , the voter-approved renewable energy mandate, plagued environmentalists all session long. But as business ended yesterday, the  bill got recycled into some good news. 

Check this out: There was a bill to extend a $20 million tax exemption for renewable energy—an exemption from sales taxes for equipment used to generate electricity through alternative sources like  wind or solar or fuel cells.

As the session started, this hippie-dippy exemption was about to sunset—with no hope of being renewed. But thanks to the I-937 bill, the Greens demanded the legislature extend the exemption. In exchange, the Greens agreed to sign off on a compromise to amend I-937 , lowering some of the renewable energy standards for utilities that voters passed in 2006. 

As it turns out, the I-937 compromise fell apart—no great loss for the environmentalists, who didn't want to amend the initiative in the first place—but the tax exemption for renewable energy passed in its own right. Basically, the Greens got their sweetener  without having to drink the medicine. 

The bill to amend I-937 may come up if Governor Gregoire calls a special session. But as the regular session came to an end last night, environmentalists got the last laugh.