Senators foresee climate-bill delay 2

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama’s Democratic allies in the U.S. Senate said Monday they were putting off introducing sweeping climate change legislation for a few weeks but hoped for a final vote in late 2009.

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair John Kerry (D-Mass.) had hoped to unveil the bill shortly after lawmakers return next week following a month-long August break.

In a joint statement, Kerry and Boxer said their efforts to craft the legislation were “moving along well,” but that they now hoped to “introduce our bill later in September.”

As causes for the delay, they cited the death of Sen. Ted Kennedy, Kerry’s August hip-replacement surgery, and the pitched political battle over Obama’s push to remake U.S. health care.

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) “fully expects the Senate to have ample time to consider this comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation before the end of the year,” said his spokesperson, Jim Manley.

The House of Representatives passed its version of the bill in late June. If, as expected, the Senate passes a different version, the two chambers would have to thrash out a compromise before legislation can go to Obama to be signed into law.

Kerry has said he hopes that key Senate committees will have acted on the bill before global climate change talks in Copenhagen in December.

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