Amid the drama in the Senate and enactment of tax cut legislation, you might have missed an important and encouraging development last week in the U.S. House: H.R. 1, reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, survived attacks from the Right and Left and was passed, thanks to a strong alliance between the Administration, House New Democrats, and both Democrats and Republicans on the House Education and Workforce Committee.

As pointed out in a press release by the co-chairs of the House New Democrat Coalition -- Reps. Cal Dooley of CA, Tim Roemer of IN, and Jim Moran of VA -- H.R. 1, as passed, contains virtually all the key elements of the New Democrat "3R's" bill: better targeting of funds to disadvantaged students and schools; more accountability for measurable results; more flexibility for states and school districts so long as they achieve results; and more funding linked to higher achievement. This isn't surprising since George Bush borrowed many aspects of the Three R's plan for his education blueprint back in 1999. But since many of those ideas irked both conservatives and liberals, it certainly wasn't a sure thing that they'd survive.

In fact, H.R. 1 survived two efforts from conservative Republicans to gut its key elements. Rep. Peter Hoekstra, supported by a coalition of fellow conservatives and some liberal Democrats, sought to strike the annual tests that would serve as the centerpiece of the bill's accountability provisions. That amendment was defeated by a 255-173 margin. Another amendment to eliminate the targeting of funds to disadvantaged students and schools, and reduce accountability for results by turning federal education assistance into a no-strings "block grant" was withdrawn when its defeat appeared certain.

This doesn't mean the bill is perfect. As Andrew Rotherham, director of PPI's 21st Century Schools Project, writes in today's Washington Post, not enough attention has been paid to making the testing policy in the bill effective. Instead, the President has cast the issue as a simple referendum on the concept of testing, thereby obscuring some important issues about how to do it right.

But, overall, the House bill is a strong one -- and a definite improvement over current law.

If New Democrats supplied the model for education reform, credit is due to the Administration, Education and Workforce Chairman Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), and especially the ranking Democrat on that committee, Rep. George Miller (D-CA) for sticking to the "3R's" model. A syndicated column last week by Robert Novak, complaining about a Bush-Miller alliance to thwart conservative efforts to water down the bill's funding or accountability measures, was perhaps the best evidence of bipartisan success.

In many respects, the Senate education bill working its way towards final passage could be improved by elements borrowed from H.R. 1, especially its accountability provisions. This legislation still has a way to go before becoming law and there is still plenty of opportunity for mischief from those who seek to weaken it. We urge New Democrats in both Houses to "keep their eyes on the prize" by using the "3R's" bill as a template, and we urge the White House and Members of Congress from both parties to take a long look at this legislation to see what real bipartisanship can accomplish.