Washington (Platts)--25Jul2011/321 pm EDT/1921 GMT

Democrats in the US House of Representatives Monday promised to offer a number of amendments aimed at blocking the nearly 40 policy riders Republicans attached to the fiscal 2012 Interior, Environment and related agencies spending bill, which is scheduled to reach the House floor this week.

The bill (H.R. 2584) includes dozens of "policy riders" that would, among other things, block the Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to regulate GHG emissions from power plants and refineries, prevent the Department of Interior from protecting additional animals and plants under the Endangered Species Act and lifting a prohibition Interior imposed last month on uranium mining near the Grand Canyon.

Washington Representative Norm Dicks,the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, said he expects to gain Republican support for amendments that would withdraw the uranium mining provision, a measure blocking new additions to the endangered species list and a provision that regulates ballast water on ships.

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The effort is important, Dicks said, because "We can't take for granted the Senate will be able to take all of these riders out."

Representative Michael Fitzpatrick, a Pennsylvania Republican, will co-sponsor the amendment to restore the Endangered Species Act funding, spokesman Darren Smith said.

Other riders targeting regulation of the energy sector would delay for 18 months EPA rules on power plant air toxics emissions and cross-state pollution, delay the next round of greenhouse-gas rules for motor vehicles and force Interior to provide detailed reports on denied offshore drilling permits, among other things.

Interior, EPA, the US Forest Service and related agencies would receive a total of $27.5 billion under the bill -- $3.8 billion below President Barack Obama's requested levels for those agencies. EPA would get $7.1 billion, $1.5 billion less than the current-year level, and Interior would be funded at $9.9 billion, $720 million below fiscal 2011.

On Thursday, the White House threatened to veto the bill, citing the overall spending level and the ban on implementing greenhouse gas rules among other reasons.

The US Senate has not started crafting its version of the Interior spending bill, but Democratic leaders there have said they would not accept the House bill.

--Keith Chu, keith_chu@platts.com