The possibility of the first significant bipartisan change in direction in Iraq advanced this month when the Senate Armed Services Committee unanimously approved our proposal to have the Iraqis assume more of the cost of securing and rebuilding their own country. If it becomes law, our plan would save the U.S. taxpayers billions of dollars.

Much is different now than when the war began in 2003, both for our nation and for Iraq. The Iraqi government is flush with oil revenues. The latest estimates indicate that its revenues could skyrocket to $70 billion in 2008, far more than what the government of Iraq had anticipated when it put together its budget of $47 billion. Since 2003, the cost of a barrel of Iraqi oil has increased by 250 percent.

As a result of record-high oil prices, Iraq is experiencing a significant financial windfall. With Americans struggling with the high cost of energy, there is simply no reason for American taxpayers to continue to shoulder so many of the expenses that should be borne by the Iraqis. These costs include major reconstruction projects; the salaries, training and equipping of the Iraqi Security Forces; the salaries of the Sons of Iraq, and the fuel that U.S. troops use for operations in a country that has the second-largest oil reserves in the world. Our bipartisan legislation would transfer these costs to the Iraqis.

First, our plan prohibits American tax dollars from being spent on major reconstruction projects in Iraq. The era of the U.S. government paying for big reconstruction projects for the Iraqis must come to an end.

We have always thought that much of our reconstruction assistance should have been in the form of loans to the Iraqis rather than grants in order to give them a stake in the projects. In 2003, we joined a bipartisan effort to structure $10 billion of our reconstruction assistance to Iraq as loans. While this legislation was approved by the Senate, it did not become law. If it had, we cannot help but believe that not only would the burden on the American taxpayers have been considerably less but also that the Iraqis would have had much more ownership in the successful reconstruction of their own county. What was common sense in 2003 is now compelling given the windfall of oil revenues benefiting Iraq.

Second, our proposal directs the administration to ensure that the Iraqi government pays the costs of the salaries, training, equipping of the Iraqi Security Forces and for the salaries of the Sons of Iraq, organizations of Iraqi men that have helped to turn the tide against al-Qaida in Anbar Province and around Baghdad. Currently, the salaries for the Sons of the Iraq alone cost American taxpayers about $300 million a month. Having the Iraqis assume this financial responsibility would also make them more accountable for the performance of their security forces.

Third, our plan directs the administration to negotiate an agreement with the Iraqi government for reimbursement of certain costs of joint operations between U.S. and Iraqi troops. Among the potential costs to be reimbursed by the Iraqis would be the cost of the fuel that U.S. troops use in Iraq. Monthly fuel costs for our troops in Iraq amount to approximately $153 million. While the U.S. receives subsidies from Kuwait for about half of what the military consumes, the military has to buy the other half on the open market at prevailing prices, currently about $3.60 a gallon. Meanwhile, the Baghdad government subsidizes fuel for its own citizens, allowing them to pay only about $1.40 a gallon.

The legislation we have authored paves the way for the first truly bipartisan change in our nation’s Iraq policy. In a sign that this concept has broad support among members of both parties, our proposal was approved unanimously by the Armed Services Committee.

Asking Iraqis to take more responsibility for their own security and the rebuilding of their country will give them a sense of ownership and only makes sense given Iraq’s growing budget surplus. This is an opportunity for the Iraqis to assume more responsibility for their own future and to save American taxpayers billions of dollars.