Bloomberg, Oil Companies, Buyout Firms Avoid Tax Hits With New House Rules:

The oil companies, multinational corporations and private-equity managers that fought off tax increases over the past four years can breathe easier. New rules that the Republican-led House of Representatives will adopt today make it less likely that Congress will raise business taxes in the next two years to offset unrelated spending increases and tax cuts, lobbyists and budget experts said.

For now, corporations no longer need worry about the targeted revenue-raising measures they faced in recent years, said lobbyist Kenneth J. Kies, managing director of the Federal Policy Group in Washington. “It’s all off the table,” said Kies, whose clients include General Electric Co., Hess Corp., and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. “The one thing that can bring it back is if there’s actually a serious effort at fundamental tax reform.”

While they controlled both chambers of Congress, Democrats often turned to the business tax code when seeking revenue- raising offsets. A 2010 state-aid law, for example, included $9.6 billion in new limits on foreign tax credits and other overseas activities. A 2010 law creating a tax credit for hiring unemployed workers contained new requirements for foreign banks that hold accounts of U.S. citizens. Further, a 2009 law that expanded the children’s health insurance program included $64.7 billion in tax increases on tobacco products.