AUGUSTA (AP) – Firm commitments for action and a rough agreement on the amount to be negotiated could allow lawmakers to put off – at least for a while – decisions on new state borrowing for highway and environmental projects, research and development initiatives and public land acquisition, Gov. John Baldacci said Thursday.

Other fiscal matters already before lawmakers were caught up in late session snags.

The House of Representatives moved into debate on a broad tax overhaul plan brought forth by Democrats on the Taxation Committee and the panel’s independent chairman, but the measure was tabled for at least another day without a vote.

The House, meanwhile, narrowly rejected a Republican alternative to a Democrat-developed package of budget changes designed to replace a controversial $450 million state borrowing, but put off further action until Friday. The vote was 77-74.

After missing a long-standing target for adjournment on Wednesday, lawmakers may now not complete their business for the year before month’s end, if then.

Besides the budget and tax overhaul legislation, there is still widespread interest in putting out a package of bond proposals for consideration by voters this fall.

Disagreement over borrowing hamstrung the last Legislature.

This year, an Appropriations Committee staff analysis found that initiatives worth $367.9 million out of a total of $965 million in proposals that were put forth had won endorsements from other committees who held hearings with the Appropriations panel.

Baldacci, who originally offered a $200 million borrowing package of his own, said Thursday he hoped to receive from legislative leaders “a definite decision that there will be a bond package for November and what the ballpark figure of that bond package would be.”

AP-ES-06-16-05 1831EDT