US Domestic News Roundup: Evacuations ordered after two California wildfires converge into one; Exclusive-U.S. will not lift travel restrictions, citing Delta variant -official and more

The crash took place at around 5 pm Pacific Time (12 am GMT) on Interstate 15 in Millard County, Utah Highway Patrol said in a statement. U.S. Senate could open infrastructure debate this week The U.S. Senate could vote again this week on whether to begin debating a key piece of President Joe Biden's agenda, a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan to rebuild the nation's roads and bridges, if negotiators can finalize the details of the measure.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Evacuations ordered after two California wildfires converge into one

Crews and officials battling a large fire that has incinerated more than 190,000 acres (77,000 hectares) in northern California braced for the possibility on Sunday that smoke columns could spawn lightning storms capable of igniting more blazes. The swarming Dixie fire in Butte County, north of Sacramento, gained ground on Saturday and was only 21% contained as of Sunday, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2021/7/14/dixie-fire.

Exclusive-U.S. will not lift travel restrictions, citing Delta variant -official

The United States will not lift any existing travel restrictions "at this point" due to concerns over the highly transmissible COVID-19 Delta variant and the rising number of U.S. coronavirus cases, a White House official told Reuters. The decision, which comes after a senior level White House meeting late Friday, means the long-running travel restrictions that have barred much of the world's population from the United States since 2020 will not be lifted in the short term.

U.S. House Speaker Pelosi names Republican Kinzinger to Jan. 6 panel

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday formally named Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger to serve on a select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump. Kinzinger, Pelosi said in a statement, "brings great patriotism to the committee's mission: to find the facts and protect our democracy."

Republican lawmaker says public transit dispute holding up U.S. infrastructure bill

The lead U.S. Republican negotiator on an infrastructure plan said on Sunday he hoped for a detailed agreement sometime this week despite a dispute over spending on mass transit, but a Democratic source said several other issues were also unresolved. Lawmakers are hoping to hold a procedural vote in the Senate as soon as Monday on whether to start debate on the bipartisan plan, and negotiators are trying to nail down final details. Issues that have strained the agreement include a provision intended to lift workers' wages https://reut.rs/3rALYal.

Biden says 'remains to be seen' if immigration measure part of wider budget bill

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday said he remained adamant about the need to create a pathway for U.S. citizenship for so-called Dreamer immigrants, but it "remains to be seen" if that will be part of a $3.5 trillion budget measure. "There must be a pathway to citizenship," Biden told reporters as he returned to the White House after spending the weekend at his home in Wilmington, Delaware.

Seven killed in vehicle pileup caused by sandstorm in Utah

At least seven people were killed and others were flown to hospital in critical condition when around 20 vehicles crashed in a pileup during a sandstorm that reduced visibility on a Utah highway, state authorities said. The crash took place at around 5 pm Pacific Time (12 am GMT) on Interstate 15 in Millard County, Utah Highway Patrol said in a statement.

U.S. Senate could open infrastructure debate this week

The U.S. Senate could vote again this week on whether to begin debating a key piece of President Joe Biden's agenda, a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan to rebuild the nation's roads and bridges, if negotiators can finalize the details of the measure. Senators from both parties worked over the weekend to try to finish the deal so that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer could try again as early as Monday to open floor debate on the measure. Republicans blocked https://www.reuters.com/world/us/work-in-progress-us-infrastructure-bill-faces-test-senate-floor-2021-07-21 the Democrat's effort to start floor action last week, complaining they lacked the details of the deal.

Several major issues unresolved in bipartisan infrastructure talks - Democratic source

Several major issues have yet to be resolved in the U.S. Senate's bipartisan talks on an infrastructure spending measure, a Democratic source said on Sunday. These included wage rates, public transit funding, water funding, broadband, spending on highways and bridges, and using unspent COVID-19 relief money as a way to pay for the program, the source said.

U.S. will not investigate nursing home deaths in New York, two other states -letter

The U.S. Justice Department has decided not to open a civil rights investigation into nursing homes in New York and two other states regarding their COVID-19 response, dealing a blow to several Republican lawmakers who had demanded a probe. One underlying issue is whether three states with Democratic governors - New York, Michigan and Pennsylvania - inadvertently added to the coronavirus death toll in the early stages of the pandemic by allowing nursing homes to take in residents who had been hospitalized for COVID-19.