WASHINGTON - Reaching compromise on a fourth try at recession relief, the House overwhelmingly passed legislation yesterday that combines business tax cuts with an extension of jobless benefits for millions of people.

"We've finally arrived at the right balance," said Rep. Tim Roemer, D-Ind.

The vote was 417-3 to send the bill to the Senate, where three previous House-passed Republican economic recovery packages have languished. This time, Democrats said it appears likely the Senate will send the measure to President Bush.

"We've reached a tenuous consensus here," said House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., called the GOP effort "long overdue and awfully late." He reserved judgment until all details are reviewed but added that the bill appeared to "deserve our support."

"We're pleased with the decision of the Republican leadership," Daschle told reporters.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., bristled at the notion that the House GOP was to blame for the delay, arguing that it was the Senate that failed to act for months.

"We would not back down," Hastert told reporters. "We did not raise the white flag."

The vote came as Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told the Senate Banking Committee the economy already is expanding faster than expected and that extending unemployment benefits is a "most reasonable approach."

Bush had been pushing for a broader economic stimulus since the Sept. 11 terror attacks exacerbated a downturn. He told a Hispanic business group Wednesday that Congress should act despite evidence that the economy is recovering.

"I think the economy has still got problems. ... I still think we ought to do more," Bush said. "There needs to be a stimulus bill."

White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said the president would sign the bill into law even though it is a scaled-back version of the original stimulus proposal.

"The president is concerned that we don't have a jobless recovery," Fleischer said. "It's a compromise. The president is saying today he will support a compromise."