House Approves Tax Measure

WASHINGTON — The House today passed the only tax bill Congress is likely to consider this year, a relatively modest effort that offers relief for a variety of special interests and tax increases for others.

The vote was 380 to 25, with solid support from both parties. The bill--which would provide special breaks for rural mail carriers, free-lance writers, first-time home buyers, and farmers and other off-road users of diesel fuel--now goes to the Senate. To pay for those tax reductions, the bill would put the bite on pipe smokers, defense contractors, corporations that own other corporations, some farmers, and certain people who claim deductions for maintaining an office in their home.