Funeral and burial services for Sen. Craig Thomas (R-Wyo.) will be held in Wyoming on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, the Senator’s office announced Wednesday. [IMGCAP(1)]

Thomas’ funeral will be held on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Casper, while the burial will follow on Sunday at Riverside Cemetery in Cody. The three-term Wyoming Republican died Monday night after a seven-month battle with leukemia. He was 74.

The Senator’s office asked that condolences to the family be sent to: Susan Thomas at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Suite 307, Washington, DC 20510, or 100 East B St., Suite 2201, Federal Center, Casper, WY 82601.

Memorials in lieu of flowers should be sent to the Rocky Mountain chapter of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society or the Special Olympics of Wyoming.

Power Plant Plan. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed legislation Wednesday to award a $3 million competitive grant for a two-year project to capture the carbon dioxide emitted from the Capitol Power Plant.

Introduced by Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the measure aims to highlight technologies that can reduce carbon dioxide pollution.

“Using the Capitol Power Plant to showcase ways to reduce carbon dioxide emissions is a good way to practice what we preach,” Alexander said in a statement. “This bill gives us an opportunity to demonstrate how coal can continue to play a role in generating electricity as long as its emissions are capped and reduced.”

The power plant burns a mix of coal, oil and natural gas to provide heating and cooling to the Capitol complex. According to a recent Government Accountability Office report, the plant produced 102,659 metric tons of emissions in fiscal 2006. About one-third of all emissions from the Capitol complex comes directly from the plant.

The committee passed two other global warming measures on Wednesday. One requires the federal government to encourage the construction of “green” government buildings; the other authorizes construction of a solar wall on the roof of the Department of Energy headquarters.

“Every bill we vote out of this committee adds to the growing momentum for comprehensive legislation to control global warming pollution,” Boxer said.

— Erin P. Billings and Elizabeth Brotherton