The budget standoff continues in Harrisburg, but it's not the state's annual spending plan that is the sticking point between Gov. Ed Rendell and the legislature.

Seeing the budget as a way to put pressure on the legislature to pass his package of ambitious plans in transportation, energy and health care, Rendell essentially has been holding the state budget hostage to get what he wants.

As the budget deadline came and went, it turns out that Rendell's energy initiative, particularly a new fee or tax on all electric bills, was reported to be the main obstacle blocking a state budget agreement.

While the governor's energy package has the laudable goal of promoting energy conservation and home-grown production, the proposal is not yet fully understood by the legislature — nor the public.

To his credit, Rendell in his second term has offered up comprehensive programs that tackle tough issues, such as health care, transportation and energy, which all beg for renewed attention and new directions.

Part of the budget stalemate in Harrisburg is no doubt the usual partisan politics that so often dominates the capital. But there also is a sense that Rendell has put too much on the legislature's plate.

Though he began rolling out his ambitious agenda on health care, energy and transportation a few months ago, the energy proposal has only recently been receiving public or legislative attention. Each of Rendell's initiatives is complicated, with broad implications and many details, so legislators might have legitimate concerns with fully understanding each proposal.

Holding the state budget hostage to his broader agenda is a calculated political risk for Rendell, who apparently believes without the leverage of a threatened partial shutdown of state government he could not get his pet agenda items through the General Assembly.

Republicans in the state Senate, in particular, have balked at Rendell's energy plan and the so-called "systems benefits charge,"which they see as yet another tax on consumers and businesses. Rendell counters that the fee, which has been estimated at 45 cents a month, or $5.40 a year, for the average consumer, is a small price to pay to fund the installation of "smart meters" and rebates for purchases of energy-saving appliances, among other things.

Rendell claims his energy initiatives will save consumers $10 billion over 10 years, while reducing the Keystone State's dependence on foreign oil and helping to grow Pennsylvania's own renewable energy industry.

Though that promise makes Rendell sound a little like a snake oil salesman, the energy initiative does offer some fresh thinking and government-financed incentives to move away from the status quo and toward conservation and sustainable production.

Rendell could have done a better job of putting his program before the public. And the legislature should have begun dealing seriously with the specifics of his energy and transportation programs earlier in the year.

But since that didn't happen, the reality is that the state's budget is being held up by a governor who wants action on his major initiatives.

Rendell's proposal on the need for more transportation funding — not only for highways and bridges but also mass transit — has fairly broad public support, though there still are disagreements about some details.

Few Pennsylvania drivers would argue that the state's roads and bridges don't need better maintenance, and that means more money. Most people in the state also know that mass transit systems in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia have been operating on the edge of financial crisis for years. Rendell's plan would pump close to $1 billion a year in new money into transportation projects across the state.

The same can be said for the governor's energy proposal. Most people can see the need to increase energy efficiency and promote conservation. The governor's plan would do that, while also allowing industry to lock in energy costs through long-term contracts with utilities.

Most of Rendell's energy plan would be paid for through the fee (or tax) attached to electric bills. This approach, which supporters of the governor's plan have said is already in place in 15 other states, would help move Pennsylvania into a more forward-thinking posture on energy and make this state something of a leader — an unusual role for a change-averse commonwealth.

Rendell's energy initiative for funding smart energy usage, conservation and development of home-grown, renewable fuels such as biodiesel, ethanol, wind and solar, is worthy of support by the legislature, including Senate Republicans.

It's time to move forward not only with the state budget, but also the governor's ambitious agendas for transportation and energy.