The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday announced its opposition to Senate legislation providing a payroll tax holiday to U.S. multinational companies that shift overseas jobs to the U.S. 

The bill, Creating American Jobs and End Offshoring Act, grants a two-year payroll tax holiday for companies that take on new employees who perform services in the U.S. that were once done abroad. The Chamber deems the provision a "zero sum game" when it comes to boosting economic activity internationally. 

Poll results from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) show strong opposition to Congress tampering with the mortgage interest deduction.  

Lawmakers moved Thursday to overturn part of the recent financial overhaul that gave the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) greater power to deny freedom of information requests from the public.

The House approved legislation on Thursday that would rein in the SEC's power to withhold information it gathers during examinations of private firms. The Senate this week unanimously approved the same bill, which now heads to the president for enactment.

SEC Chairwoman Mary Schapiro and her predecessor, Chris Cox, pushed hard for the power, arguing that it would help enforcement cases by protecting proprietary information that businesses turn over during investigations.

The exemption garnered little attention during congressional debate on the financial overhaul. After the SEC cited the exemption in a denial of a request from Fox Business Network, Democrats and Republicans quickly moved to rewrite the legislation.

"A consensus developed that this was an exemption that was far too broad," House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) said Thursday. The legislation was pushed by Sens. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.), Ted Kaufman (D-Del.) Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and John Cornyn (R-Texas).

Frank and Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) and Ed Towns (D-N.Y.) worked to rewrite the provision in the House.

Towns said the SEC measure is a "secrecy provision" that undermines the intent of the financial overhaul package.

Consumer advocacy groups, such as the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), also urged lawmakers to repeal the provision.

“This is a big win for open government and accountability. It is especially a victory for defrauded investors, the media, and whistleblowers," said Danielle Brian, executive director of POGO, in a statement.

If the Senate can't pass an extension of the Bush-era tax cuts the House may take the lead, a Democratic leader said Thursday. 

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said while the House is waiting to see what the Senate does, his chamber may "take over the effort" if the upper chamber can't move legislation. 

The comments came this afternoon as Senate and House Democrats were still working out a strategy on when to vote on extending, at the least, middle-class tax cuts. 

On a 237-187 vote, the House on Thursday approved a $42 billion bill to provide aid to small businesses. 

The vote in favor of Jacob Lew, the nominee for director of the Office of Management and Budget, was 22-1.

Senate Democrats on Thursday failed to reach a conclusion on how to handle the expiration of Bush-era tax cuts.

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on Thursday said time appears to have run out on getting enough support to pass an extension of the middle-class Bush-era tax cuts before the election. 

Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Thursday announced that he is looking into the tax status of earning by Prudential Financial, Inc. on survival death benefit accounts in its Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program. 

Recent press reports have indicated that upon the death of a SGLI policy holder, Prudential holds the survivor benefits in its own corporate account, instead of paying the benefits to their rightful owner and not crediting earnings on the funds to the beneficiaries. 

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