

Senators John F. Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, and Joseph I. Lieberman, independent of Connecticut, presented their long-delayed proposal to address global warming and energy Wednesday afternoon. They are calling it the American Power Act.

The nearly 1,000-page plan provides something for every major player – loan guarantees for nuclear plant operators, incentives for use of natural gas in transportation, exemptions from emissions caps for heavy industry, free pollution permits for utilities, modest carbon dioxide limits for oil refiners and expansion of offshore drilling for those states willing to accept the risks.

The bill’s overall goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050. The targets match those in a House bill passed last year and the Obama administration’s announced policy goal.

It is impossible to know now whether all the concessions will add up to the 60 votes needed to thwart an attempt to filibuster the bill.

But Senator Kerry said he was confident he had found a winning formula for a comprehensive approach to climate change and energy independence.

“The American Power Act will finally change our nation’s energy policy from a national weakness into a national strength,” Mr. Kerry said in a prepared statement.

“This is a bill for energy independence after a devastating oil spill, a bill to hold polluters accountable, a bill for billions of dollars to create the next generation of jobs, and a bill to end America’s addiction to foreign oil and protect the air our children breathe and the water they drink. The path to 60 votes in the Senate has been long, but despite Washington conventional wisdom, we are closer than ever to a breakthrough.”

The full text of the bill can be found at www.kerry.senate.gov.