House consideration today of a dynamic legislative package that would provide more than $50 billion in Superstorm Sandy aid is likely to spark a floor debate on climate change, mitigation funding and the federal debt.

Nearly three months after the weather event destroyed residential and tourism sectors and transportation networks along the Northeast coastline, House Republican leaders scheduled a vote on a $17 billion provision that, if adopted, would become the legislative base for members to attach another $33 billion in relief funds.

The $17 billion proposal, offered by Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), which is expected to garner sufficient bipartisan support on the House floor today, would provide $1.4 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers, $3.9 billion for community development grants, $5.4 billion for transit repairs and another $5.4 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief fund.

"There has been some delay on this because it is such a huge request and we were scouring the numbers trying to understand it, and justify," Rogers said last night. "We have to justify every dollar that we recommend that we spend."

If the Rogers proposal is approved, members would be allowed to vote on an amendment by New Jersey Republican Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, calling for $33 billion in additional funds for the tri-state region and agencies assisting in the ongoing relief efforts.

Some Democrats -- the minority in the House -- vowed to argue on the floor today that Sandy is further proof that humans have an active role in the planet's climate patterns.

The fiscally conservative flank of the House GOP, meanwhile, is likely to oppose the Frelinghuysen amendment, suggesting it focuses too much on preparedness programs and not on immediate needs. Also, they will complain that the bill is not offset with spending cuts elsewhere in the federal budget.

"It's not paid for. It has nothing to do where the money is going. It has to do that it's off budget. It's not in the budget. This is extraordinary emergency spending. So the question is, are we going to pay for it or not?" Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.) said last night during a Rules Committee discussion on Sandy aid.

The Rules Committee made in order an amendment by Mulvaney that would require Rogers' $17 billion substitute measure be offset with funds from other agencies.

And while proponents of the broader relief package argue that Congress did not offset recent disaster relief packages, Mulvaney said he would "suggest that we have to do things differently than we have for the last 30 years, or else we'll end up pretty much right where we are."

The Rules panel also made in order 11 second-degree amendments to the Frelinghuysen amendment. They include an amendment from Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) that would remove $13 million to fund an emergency response provision for the National Weather Service; an amendment from Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) that would remove $150 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's grant programs for ocean research, and Rep. John Fleming's (R-La.) amendment that would remove $9.8 million for a Fish and Wildlife Service sea wall repair project in Connecticut.

Another amendment, offered by Rules Committee member Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), would prohibit the departments of the Interior and Agriculture from buying lands with the Sandy supplemental aid (see related story).

In all, a dozen amendments on the Sandy package will be considered today on the House floor. Last night, the House unanimously passed a bill to tweak FEMA's emergency procedures, making disaster aid easier to obtain.

In a statement yesterday, the White House called on lawmakers to pass the broader Sandy bill: "Given the emergency and one-time nature of this supplemental appropriation, and in keeping with the response to Hurricane Katrina, Deepwater Horizon, and other disasters ... all funding in the bill should be designated as an emergency requirement and not be offset."

Senate leaders, frustrated by the lack of action by the House, have called for a vote on the Sandy package next week. That chamber could clear a $50 billion bill for President Obama. It is unclear how Senate Democrats, who control that chamber, would react if just a $17 billion measure is sent to them.

Both the Senate-passed bill and the Frelinghuysen amendment would almost double the administration's $592 million request to repair flood control and beach protection projects. The Rogers proposal would provide slightly less than the administration's request.

The Frelinghuysen amendment also would provide $600 million in popular state revolving funds (SRFs) to support water infrastructure projects. That's $10 million less than the White House request and $210 million less than was in the Senate-passed bill.

Government watchdog groups, such as Citizens Against Government Waste and Taxpayers for Common Sense, have been critical of the expansive supplemental proposal, noting that several items do little to address emergencies. For instance, they point to $118 million called for in Frelinghuysen's amendment for Amtrak's Northeast service that would be used to make certain improvements to rail tracks.

"Out of one side of their mouth, lawmakers are saying that we need to deal with the across-the-board cuts that are sequestration and to reduce spending. Out of the other side of their mouth, they are calling a whole litany of regular spending items 'emergency' to evade budget caps," said Steve Ellis of the Washington-based Taxpayers for Common Sense. "Business as usual got us into this $16.4 trillion debt hole; it's sure not going to get us out of it."

Outside of Washington, D.C., government leaders have urged Congress to act. In New Jersey, Republican Gov. Chris Christie has pleaded with lawmakers to provide the Garden State with money to repair boardwalks along the state's shores, Atlantic City, and roads, bridges and rail corridors destroyed by the superstorm, calling out House Republicans for moving slowly on the legislation.

Before the 112th Congress adjourned, the Senate passed a broader Sandy package. The House planned to vote on that bill, but House leaders halted the move because they said it came too close to their resolution to the so-called fiscal cliff. Only after fierce bipartisan outcry from lawmakers from the Northeast, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) called for quick votes this month on the Sandy aid.