US Democrats are pushing for climate legislation

Congress Democrats and the White House sought agreement on Wednesday on climate change measures to be part of President Joe Biden's key spending bill ahead of the upcoming UN climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland.

The Democrats have been negotiating for weeks on a spending bill for social and climate programs that includes investments in clean energy. However, West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, whose support is essential to getting the bill passed in the US Senate, opposes certain proposals, such as: B. the plan to reward utility companies who invest in renewable fuels and punish those who do not.

Instead, Democrats are considering a number of options, including increasing tax credits for nuclear power production and improving credits for carbon sequestration projects, according to three Congressional sources involved in the discussion.

Biden told lawmakers on Tuesday that he wanted an agreement on both the non-partisan infrastructure bill and the broader budget bill ahead of the UN talks. "He was very clear that the deadline that matters most to him is something he can take with him to Glasgow," a source said.

Biden said he believed Manchin and Senator Kyrsten Sinema, another centrist Democrat, could agree on a spending bill on the order of $ 1.75 to $ 1.9 trillion, less than $ 3.5 trillion, the source said .

The Democrats need Manchin's vote in the 50:50 Senate to pass the spending bill by a simple majority. However, he has spoken out against the Biden-sponsored $ 150 billion Clean Energy Payment Plan (CEPP), which aims to reward electricity suppliers for investing in renewable energies. West Virginia is a major producer of fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas.

Manchin also said this week that a carbon tax backed by several Senate Democrats is out of the question.

Biden proposed allocating $ 300 billion to tax incentives for solar and wind turbines and electric vehicles, one of the sources added. Instead of $ 150 billion for the Clean Energy Payment Plan, which Manchin rejects, that amount would go towards nuclear energy and carbon capture and storage.

The source said he didn't think this alternative would be acceptable to some progressive Democrats. "That has yet to be worked out," he said.

MP Pramila Jayapal, a leading Progressive MP, told reporters that Democrats were not yet sure how to replace the clean energy plan. However, she said they were looking for ways to ensure US competitiveness and the reliability and resilience of energy systems.

The promotion of hydrogen production is also up for debate, said two of the sources from Congress. The Democrats are also considering giving state block grants to encourage green energy production, the sources said.