In the scramble to adjourn, U.S. Congress took two actions last week worth noting.

First, led by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the House and Senate appropriately delayed a requirement that everyone crossing the United States' northern border with Canada by land carry a passport or official identification card. That was an important step that now allows time for a reasonable security plan at that border to be crafted.

Americans and Canadians are currently required to show a driver's license to cross the border into the United States. A tougher measure requiring a passport or a specially adapted Pass Card was scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2008.

Giving families a year to obtain passports at a cost of about $100 each or a Pass Card for $50 was a challenging complication and expense. Officials in both countries feared the change would stifle important cross-border activity.

Congress took the right step in delaying the requirement for 17 months.

The stakes for Vermont are significant. Canadians bought $2.14 billion in Vermont products and services last year. Hampering cross-border travel would cut into that revenue by discouraging Canadians from visiting ski areas, stores, inns and more.

Tougher identification requirements would also make life more difficult for Vermonters and Canadians who live near the border and cross frequently for day-to-day activities -- children's sporting events, grocery shopping, and more.

While tighter security at the border is warranted, requiring expensive and complex identification is not a thoughtful solution. Delaying the system until June 2009 gives Congress time to formulate a better border plan that includes public input from both sides of the divide. Now that hard work can begin.

Secondly, the U.S. House failed to approve a wilderness bill that would have increased the amount of preserved land in the Green Mountain National Forest by 42,000 acres.

A similar measure appeared headed toward easy passage last week until Gov. Jim Douglas unexpectedly voiced concern about the plan's impact on a handful of communities near the wilderness area that rely on logging for their livelihood.

A compromise was crafted that Douglas supported, although it's hard to see why because that version failed to address his concerns about logging. In fact, forester Norm Arseneault of Granville told the Free Press that he felt betrayed by the governor's final position.

In the end, as the clock wound down Saturday on congressional action, the wilderness bill sat untouched in the House. What an avoidable mess.

Vermont's natural landscape is under assault from those who seek to develop it or open even the wildest places to all-terrain vehicles or other manmade uses. Safeguarding some portion of wilderness for future generations is vital.

The U.S. House should approve the wilderness bill when members return to Capitol Hill in November for a lame duck session.