Mary Landrieu fight Corporate Greed

October 11, 2004
A Senator's Outrage Delays Passage of Corporate Tax Bill
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 - The Senate cleared a path on Sunday for a bill to hand out about $140 billion in corporate tax breaks, but it was blocked from a final vote by a fight over a provision aimed at helping reservists on duty in Iraq.

The 633-page bill, which has already been passed by the House, is loaded with hundreds of provisions that provide benefits to a wide range of interests, including the General Electric Company, oil drillers, shipbuilders, cruise ship operators, importers of ceiling fans, corn farmers, tobacco farmers and even foreign gamblers.

Despite widespread criticism of the bill as a Christmas tree of special-interest provisions, the House passed it by a vote of 280 to 141 on Friday, and the Senate voted, 66 to 14, on Sunday to cut off a potential filibuster.

But Senate leaders were blocked for a day by Senator Mary L. Landrieu, Democrat of Louisiana, who was furious that the final bill did not include $2 billion in tax credits for companies that keep paying employees who are called to active duty from military reserves and the National Guard.

Ms. Landrieu said she would insist that the Senate use the full 30 hours of debate allowed under its rules. Still, the bill is expected to pass easily once it comes up for a vote on Monday.

The largest provisions of the corporate tax bill would repeal a $5 billion annual tax break for exporters that has been declared illegal by the World Trade Organization, and replace it with a tax reduction for manufacturers in the United States.

The bill's tax breaks are worth about $140 billion over 10 years, but it is supposed to raise the same amount of money by closing tax shelters, raising customs fees and eliminating the old tax benefit.

On Friday night, Senate leaders overcame objections by opponents of the bill, including Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, who were angry that it would provide a $10 billion buyout for tobacco farmers without subjecting tobacco products to regulation by the Food and Drug Administration.

Opponents could not muster enough votes to block the bill through a filibuster, so Mr. Kennedy and his allies settled for separate voice votes in favor of tobacco regulation and against new overtime rules.

But those bills are unlikely to become law because the House has not passed similar measures.



Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company