The House approved sweeping reforms of the U.S. intelligence system Tuesday, ending an arduous negotiation process that had threatened to remain unresolved when Congress adjourns for the year in the coming days.

The bill, which stems from recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, will create a Director of National Intelligence and establish a National Counterterrorism Center, among other reforms. The intelligence director will acquire full budgetary control over the National Intelligence Program.

The House passed the bill by a 336-75 margin. Had the House not approved the bill, legislators would have had to start from scratch next year.

The Senate overwhelmingly approved a previous version of the bill, but objections from House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter, R-California, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wisconsin, led House Speaker Dennis Hastert to refrain from holding a vote on the bill before Thanksgiving.

Sensenbrenner demanded provisions dealing with immigration and asylum laws, while Hunter worried the bill would strip the Pentagon of immediate access to vital battlefield intelligence.

Sensenbrenner remained opposed to the bill Tuesday, saying the lack of provisions barring states from issuing drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants made the bill incomplete.

But negotiations with the Senate in the last few days, spurred by a letter from President Bush, reached an agreement addressing the chain-of-command provisions Hunter wanted in the bill, and the House held an early-evening vote Tuesday.

The Senate is expected to approve the bill in a vote today. President Bush has expressed strong support for the reforms, writing in his letter to Congress the bill represents “some of the most challenging, complicated and important issues facing our government.”

Wisconsin delegates divided

Congressional representatives from Wisconsin were split in their support for the bill, with Reps. Tammy Baldwin, Paul Ryan, Ron Kind, Jerry Kleczka and Tom Petri supporting it and Reps. Mark Green, Dave Obey and Sensenbrenner voting against the measure.

In an interview Tuesday night, Green said states cannot be allowed to jeopardize the nation’s security by issuing drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants.

“I agree with Jim that a number of provisions should have been in final version, and a few are in the final bill,” Green said. “But I’ll point to the provision that would allow states to waive any standardized [national] revisions for drivers’ licenses. You create a huge loophole that terrorists could exploit.”

Green said there were several good points to the bill — including provisions against providing material support to terrorists that he helped write — but said Sensenbrenner’s measures were vital to national security. He cited the fact the 9/11 terrorists had been able to obtain dozens of state-issued drivers’ licenses.

“I believe we should close that loophole today,” Green said. “I desperately hope we can close it early next year.”

Kind wrote in a statement other 9/11 commission recommendations still needed to be addressed, but said the bill is a “crucial step in securing our nation’s safety.”

Like Green, Ryan voiced objections about the absence of Sensenbrenner’s provisions, but said in a statement the bill nonetheless deserved to be passed.

“Although we didn’t get all the reforms we wanted with this plan, it contains many crucial improvements that will build a stronger intelligence system and help protect Americans,” Ryan said. “I agree with my colleague Congressman Sensenbrenner that further reforms are necessary, and I look forward to working with him next year on these remaining issues.”

Green, however, cautioned that opponents of the license provision, such as chief Senate negotiators Susan Collins and Joe Lieberman, are not likely to change their minds.

“The people blocking [these provisions] in the Senate aren’t going away,” he said. “We think they’ll block them early next year.”

License debate shifts to Wisconsin

In light of Sensenbrenner’s objections, state Rep. Mark Gundrum, R-New Berlin, announced he would draft legislation prohibiting illegal aliens from obtaining a Wisconsin driver’s license.

Wisconsin is currently one of the 10 states to not require proof of legal presence in the country when applying for a license.

“We need this to bring Wisconsin in line with 40 other states, where one has to establish legal residence and legal presence,” Kevin Usealman, Gundrum’s communications director, said. “Those are two distinctly separate terms.”

Gundrum’s proposal would require proof of legal presence when registering for a driver’s license and would cause a license to expire upon the termination of a visa.

Gov. Jim Doyle did not offer judgment on the merits of prohibiting illegal immigrants from acquiring a driver’s license but said any national ban would need to be accompanied by federal aid.

“What Congressman Sensenbrenner is suggesting, and this is a big step for the federal government to take, is that the driver’s license process somehow becomes our national identity card,” Doyle said. “And if that’s true, I hope the federal government is ready to step in and help our motor vehicle departments … significantly with resources.”