By now most of you are no doubt aware of the Democratic party’s desire to hold 60 seats in the Senate.  Unlike their brothers and sisters in the house, holding a majority in the Senate isn’t enough for cloture (a motion to cut off debate and put a bill to a vote) – three-fifths, or 60 votes, is necessary for that.  So, without 60 votes, the minority party (in this case, the Republicans) can exercise an effective veto power over any law by preventing it from coming to the floor for voting.

One way to bypass the 60-vote requirement is through a process called “reconciliation.”  When a bill is being reconciled between House and Senate versions, a simple majority (51 votes) will be enough for cloture, and thus ensure passage of the bill.  Republicans, being in the minority, hate reconciliation bills and you can bet they’ll protest loudly if the Democrats try to sneak any legislation into reconciliation bills that don’t belong there (a tactic that has been used by both parties in years past).

In the upcoming budget bill (budget bills are subject to the 51-vote reconciliation rule), Democrats are reportedly preparing to insert legislation dealing with a national health care program, a key Democratic priority.  So what, you say!  This is a green tech blog, not health care!  Well, here’s the kicker: if Democrats go with health care, they’re likely to give up on cap and trade in the budget bill, leaving it to go the regular route of legislation.

There’s good news and bad news here.  The bad news, obviously, is that cap-and-trade will be put off yet again while the Democrats seek 60 votes, which would require at least a few moderate Republican votes to break rank.  The good news is that if it passes, cap-and-trade won’t be subject to the ten-year sunset rule that budget bills have.  In all fairness, cap-and-trade is such a major piece of legislation that it probably deserves its own bill and debate anyway.